A solar photovoltaic (PV) panel is made from many cells made from layers of semi-conducting material, most commonly silicon. When light shines on this material, a flow of electricity is created.

The cells don’t need direct sunlight to work and even work on cloudy days. However, the stronger the sunshine, the more electricity generated. Yes, solar panels work in winter!

How do solar panels work?

With a solar & battery system, you’ll be buying less electricity from the grid and you’ll be able to sell any excess electricity to the grid (earning on average £350 per year). Combining these savings, your annual electricity bills can fall by 103%, on average.

Electricity prices are expected to remain high until at least the late 2030s, so your system will protect you against rising energy costs. It could also increase the value of your property by 3%.

Your household carbon footprint will drop on average nearly 1,100kg per year, equivalent to a return flight from London to New York. Over your solar panels’ lifespan, this adds up to 30 flights. So you’re not just saving money — you’re helping the planet, too.

This 103% figure is based on a household experiencing average UK irradiance with a 4.4kWp solar panel system and a 5.2kWh battery, using 3,500kWh of electricity each year and signed up to the Intelligent Octopus Flux export tariff. If you opt for Sunsave Plus, your savings will work a bit differently, but you could be looking at more money in your pocket each month (despite the loan repayments) - find out more here.

An industry forecast predicts that power prices will remain high until the late 2030s. Cornwall Insight, July 2023.

Adding solar to a property with a D-rated EPC usually increases the rating to a C. A Rightmove study found that increasing your EPC from D to C results in an average property price increase of 3%, or £11,157. Source: Rightmove, August 2023.

What are the benefits of going solar?

The UK’s not the sunniest country all year round but it’s still worth installing a solar system. Modern solar panels generate electricity on cloudy and rainy days, so you can cut your energy bills and rely less on the grid. Also, solar panels tend to operate more efficiently in lower temperatures — perfect for the UK!

In the summer, you'll likely generate more electricity than you consume, so you can earn money by selling the surplus energy back to the grid. If you add a battery to your solar system, you can use smart tariffs to optimise your energy export and import, saving even more money.

For example, consider a typical property in London that uses 3,500kWh of electricity each year but also has a 4.3kWp solar panel system. This system will generate around 16.5kWh of electricity in June, but only 1.8kWh of electricity in December. However, the system’s overall annual output (3,223kWh) almost entirely covers the household’s annual usage.

Do solar panels work all year round?

With a solar and battery system, you’ll be buying less electricity from the grid. You can also sell any excess electricity to the grid (earning on average £350 per year). Combining these savings, your annual electricity bills can fall by 103%, on average, which means you across a year you actually earn more than you spend.

This might sound too good to be true, but it’s all because of the high performance of modern solar panels and storage batteries, as well as export income. The panels will dramatically reduce the amount of electricity you buy from the grid, and you’ll also earn money by selling your unused electricity to the grid.

This 103% figure is based on a household experiencing average UK irradiance with a 4.4kWp solar panel system and a 5.2kWh battery, using 3,500kWh of electricity each year and signed up to the Intelligent Octopus Flux export tariff.

If you sign up for Sunsave Plus, your savings will work a bit differently. But you could have more money in your pocket each month, despite the monthly payments. Find out more about savings with Sunsave Plus.

These figures are all estimates and every household is unique. Your exact savings with a solar and battery system will depend on a number of factors, including how suitable your roof is, where your property’s located, and your annual electricity consumption.

For a better estimate of how much you could save, try our online savings calculator and book a call with one of our friendly solar experts.

How much money will I save going solar?

Yes. Whenever you generate more electricity than you need (or can fit in your battery), you can sell it to the grid through a scheme called the Smart Export Guarantee (SEG).

All UK energy suppliers with over 150,000 customers have to offer a price to households that export renewably-sourced electricity. Smaller energy suppliers can opt in, too.

Your export tariff provider doesn’t have to be the same as your energy provider, but many energy suppliers offer better rates to customers.

Can I sell my excess solar energy to the grid?

We’re fully accredited by MCS, EPVS, HIES, NAPIT and TrustMark. Find out more about what these accreditations mean below.

The Microgeneration Certification Scheme (MCS)

MCS certifies, assures quality and provides consumer protection for microgeneration installations and installers, including solar PV. We’re a member of MCS, so you can be assured your solar PV system will be installed to a high standard and built to last. With your MCS certificate, you’re eligible to sign up to an SEG (Smart Export Guarantee) tariff with an energy supplier to make money from your excess electricity.

Energy Performance Validation Scheme Gold (EPVS Gold)

EPVS is a certification standard that ensures solar PV and battery energy-saving estimates are accurate by validating installers’ processes. Our EPVS Gold rating means we’re best in class for the accuracy of our savings calculations. So when you choose Sunsave, you’ll know that an independent third party has validated the individual energy-saving estimates in your proposal.

The Home Insulation and Energy Systems Quality Assured Contractors Scheme (HIES)

HIES is CTSI-approved Consumer Code that gives you protection for renewable energy installations, including solar photovoltaic panels, batteries and inverters. When you install solar with Sunsave, HIES protects any deposit you’ve made to us in the event that we can’t install your solar system. Through their insurance-backed guarantee, they ensure your workmanship guarantee is upheld, in the unlikely event that we can’t. HIES also provides a fair and independent arbitration mechanism if you believe that we haven’t delivered the installation experience you expected.

TrustMark is the Government Endorsed Quality Scheme that covers work you choose to have carried out in or around your home. We’ve been vetted to meet TrustMark’s high standards and have made a commitment to provide good customer service.

Are you accredited and what do the accreditations mean?

We’re a Which? Trusted Trader and are fully accredited by MCS, EPVS, HIES, NAPIT and TrustMark. Our dedicated in-house team has decades of solar experience and manages your solar installation from start to finish, working exclusively with MCS-accredited subcontractors to ensure your system is built to last. We handle everything from design, DNO application, survey, supply and install, monitoring and financing — so you don’t need to lift a finger. 

How do you ensure the highest quality installations?

Sunsave Standard is our traditional solar and battery solution, with upfront payment. Our solar experts will create a bespoke design tailored to your household, taking into account a whole range of factors including the size of your roof, your annual electricity consumption, and your budget. From site survey to scaffolding, we’ll take care of everything. Once we’ve started, your installation will be complete in a few days.

All of our Sunsave Standard systems come with a two-year workmanship warranty.

We typically take a 15% deposit when you sign the contract (you can pay by bank transfer or card), and the remainder after we’ve installed your system.

What is Sunsave Standard?

You can pay us via bank transfer or card. We typically take a 15% deposit upon contract signature, and the remainder after we’ve installed your system. If you like, you could use a loan from another provider to pay for this. Many high street banks offer home improvement loans at competitive rates which can be used for solar systems.

How does upfront purchase work?

After your survey, we’ll give you a finalised price and contract that you can discuss with your solar expert. If you’re ready to go ahead, we’ll ask you to sign the contract. We can usually install your system within 3 to 6 weeks from contract signing — we’ll work with you to find a convenient date.

How long do I have to wait until my solar panels are installed?

If everything goes smoothly with your installation, your solar panels should start generating electricity immediately. This means that you’ll be using clean, green electricity from day one, and you should see this reflected in your next monthly electricity bill.

If you pay a fixed amount to your energy supplier each month, you won’t see your energy bills come down immediately. Instead, you’ll most likely build up credit with your energy supplier, which will be paid to you at the end of the year. To avoid this happening, we recommend contacting your supplier to change your monthly payment - many allow you to do this in your account.

Will I start seeing energy bill savings immediately?

Most people see solar panels and solar batteries as a long-term investment, so it’s understandable that you want to know when you’ll pay back the initial cost. The answer to this question depends on many factors, including:

For example, some properties might recoup the cost of their system in as little as five years, whereas others might take closer to 15.

For a quick estimate of how much you could save, use our online calculator.

When will I break even on my solar & battery system?

Adding a battery to a solar panel system means you can store excess electricity that you would otherwise have exported to the grid. With solar panels on their own, you'll probably only end up using about 50% of what they generate, but the addition of a battery can usually take this up to about 75-80%. 

If you’re out during the day and your solar panels are producing electricity, this goes into your battery to use in the evening. Most solar systems have a battery sized according to your property, so it should provide enough electricity for the night before it needs recharging.

A solar battery also works well with time of use tariffs. It allows you to buy and store cheap night-time grid electricity to use later in the day when electricity would normally be much more expensive.

We’ll make sure you are on the best tariff to maximise your solar savings day and night. So you can sit back and enjoy the extra cash.

What are the benefits of installing a battery with solar panels?

Solar panels are very reliable. They have no moving parts and all of their components are kept together in a sturdy aluminium frame. Most solar panels don’t require much cleaning or maintenance, and all our solar panels come with a 25-year product warranty and a 25-year performance warranty.

Batteries are also built to last a long time, although typically not as long as solar panels. Most solar batteries last around 10-12 years (our batteries come with a minimum 10-year warranty), so they usually need to be replaced about halfway through the lifespan of your solar panels.

With Sunsave Plus, we’ll provide you with one free out-of-warranty battery replacement, so you don’t need to worry about getting a new battery when your old one stops performing.

How reliable are solar panels and solar batteries?

Most roofs in the UK are suitable for solar panels. Your roof needs to be strong enough to support the weight of solar panels, but this is rarely a problem in UK homes.

We’ll inspect your roof before going ahead with installation. If we have any doubts, we’ll let you know.

It’s also important that your roof can maximise the output of your solar panel system. The optimum UK roof for solar panels is south-facing with 0% shading and angled at 35-40 degrees. But this doesn’t mean other roofs can’t have an effective solar system.

East-facing and west-facing solar panels can be very productive. We can install panels on a north-facing roof, but we don’t recommend it. There’s very little sunlight so you won’t generate as much electricity.

Is my roof suitable for solar?

A remote survey is a pre-booked video call with one of our friendly solar experts. It’s an important stage of the process where we check your property and make sure we can deliver the system we’ve designed at the price we’ve quoted.

Remote surveys are faster and more accurate than in-person visits or sending photos. A survey usually takes 10-30 minutes, depending on your property size and the information we get on the call. We can usually approve an installation 20 minutes after your survey.

How does the remote survey work?

Once we’ve agreed an installation date, we’ll start planning your scaffolding and organising the delivery of your kit. On installation day, our engineers and roofers will install your system and connect everything to your electric meter.

We’ll usually finalise your installation in two days, but we’ll leave your scaffolding up for five more days in case there are any issues. Once everything’s wrapped up, we’ll send you a handover pack with all the certificates and documents you need.

For more information, check out our full guide to solar panel installation. 

How does the installation process work?

We’ve taken careful steps to ensure Sunsave is set up for the long term.

We’ve raised substantial investment from established venture capital funds that have previously invested in Google, Airbnb and PayPal, and we also have backing from successful investors like industry leader Bill Nussey, author of Freeing Energy, and Stuart Rose, Chairman of Asda.

We’ve achieved full recognition from all the industry-leading accreditation schemes, including the MCS, HIES, EVPS, and Trustmark. We’re fully approved by the Financial Conduct Authority, and we’re also a Which? Trusted Trader.

We’re government backed. In May 2023, we received a £200,000 grant from the UK government via its Green Home Finance Accelerator initiative to fund the research and development of our solar subscription. In January 2024, this was followed up by a further £2 million to launch Sunsave Plus.

We’ve hired a talented team with decades of experience in the solar and energy industries.

As a safety net, the HIES consumer protection scheme provides deposit and payment insurance, as well as an insurance-backed guarantee that protects you in case Sunsave stops trading.

How do I know Sunsave is built to last?

Frequently asked questions

Sunsave Plus is everything you need to go solar, delivered as a 20-year subscription. It includes the design, supply, financing and install of a system tailored to your home, plus ongoing monitoring, maintenance and insurance through the Sunsave Guarantee for the length of your subscription. Learn more about Sunsave Plus.

What is Sunsave Plus?

We offer low cost, long-term financing that spreads the cost of your system over 20 years. So instead of paying for a solar system in one go, you make a smaller monthly payment that allows you to save money on your energy bill from day one.

The subscription ends after 20 years, but you’ll keep your system and continue to save on your energy bill.

Our best-in-class kit works with smart tariffs like Intelligent Octopus Flux, so you can sell your excess energy to the grid and maximise your savings.

How does Sunsave Plus work?

Sunsave Plus is a good option for people who want to save on their energy bills with solar, without making a large upfront payment for a system. It also offers security and peace of mind with the Sunsave Guarantee, so you don’t get any surprise costs.

You need to be a homeowner in England or Wales to get Sunsave Plus.

Who is Sunsave Plus for?

Yes. Sunsave Plus isn’t a lease or rental — you own your system from the day it’s installed.

Do I own my Sunsave Plus solar and battery system?

Solar batteries are built to last a long time, although typically not as long as solar panels which work for longer than 25 years. Most batteries last around 10-15 years (our batteries come with a 10-year warranty), so they usually need to be replaced about halfway through the lifespan of your solar panels.

With Sunsave Plus, as part of the Sunsave Guarantee, we’ll provide you with one free out-of-warranty battery replacement, so you don’t need to worry about getting a new battery when your old one stops performing.

How long do solar batteries last?

We only use best-in-class kit, and we’re fully accredited by MCS and other relevant industry bodies. The independent experts at Which? have also put us to the test and endorsed Sunsave as a Trusted Trader, demonstrating that we’re one of the highest quality solar installers around.

That said, sometimes things go wrong. And if that happens, you’re covered by the Sunsave Guarantee for the length of your subscription. It includes 24/7 remote monitoring, downtime cover, a free battery replacement, and any other parts and repairs that are out of warranty. Your system will also be insured by Aviva against damage, fire and theft.

25-year manufacturer’s warranty on panels

12-year manufacturer’s warranty on battery and inverter

one free out-of-warranty battery replacement

one free out-of-warranty inverter replacement if required 

24/7 system monitoring so we can see if something’s not working as expected

troubleshooting and support with any warranty claims

insurance for damage, fire, theft, and any financial losses if the system isn’t working for an extended period of time

What's the Sunsave Guarantee?

Every Sunsave Plus system is insured by Aviva against damage, fire and theft. We also provide downtime cover, so if your system is not working correctly for an extended period of time, then we’ll credit your monthly fees while we work to get it back to health.

For instance, if your system is experiencing an issue (e.g. not generating electricity) which hasn’t been resolved with remote troubleshooting, we’ll credit 1/30th of the monthly payment for each day that the issue persists.

Does Sunsave Plus come with insurance?

Your Sunsave Plus application can have up to two applicants.

The lead applicant must be an owner of the property

At least one applicant must be between 18 and 65 years old

What are the eligibility requirements?

If you ever find yourself in a difficult situation that affects how you manage your relationship with Sunsave or any payments to us, please just let us know. This could be anything from a physical or mental health challenge to a life event affecting you or a loved one.

We’ll add you to our priority customer list, which will help us make sure we do everything we can to support you. This could include changes to how we interact with you or a nominated contact, or agreeing an alternative repayment plan that suits your circumstances better.

You’ll only need to tell us about this once. In some cases we might need to ask you for some extra information.

What if my circumstances change and I find myself in a difficult situation?

Sunsave Plus will show on your credit history in three ways:

1. Soft check: we run a soft check during our eligibility check, and also periodically during your contract to monitor your financial health. Soft checks are very common and won’t affect your credit score. 

2. Hard check: we run a hard check once your solar & battery system is installed. Hard checks are less common, and could affect your credit score and your ability to obtain credit elsewhere. The impact of a hard check depends on your other credit history, for example if you’ve signed up to many credit products at the same time. You should consider the timing of your Sunsave Plus installation in relation to any other upcoming finance commitments you have, e.g. a mortgage renewal in the next six months. If you’d like to lock in a price but delay your installation, just let us know.

3. Regular payment commitment: we report your payment history to credit agencies, and this will show as an unsecured personal loan. If you continue to make your monthly payment to Sunsave, you’ll develop a history of being a good payer which can help to build your credit score. If you miss payments, this will have the opposite effect. 

If you seek to borrow from other lenders, they’ll consider your credit history along with your affordability (i.e. any income and outgoings), and this will include any committed repayments such as Sunsave Plus. However, the impact of Sunsave Plus on any affordability calculation should be rather small:

The value of each monthly Sunsave Plus repayment is usually fairly low in relation to other costs of living

Your energy bills should be lower (you can see our estimates of how much lower in your Sunsave Plus proposal).

How will Sunsave Plus affect my credit history?

Even though Sunsave Plus starts as a 20-year subscription, you are free to make a full repayment to end your contract whenever you want - without any fees or penalties.

For full settlements, the remaining balance would just be the outstanding credit amount (i.e. not any interest or monitoring & maintenance fees you would have incurred had your subscription continued).

For partial settlements, any repayment you make would be deducted from the outstanding credit amount. The term of your contract with Sunsave will be reduced but your fixed monthly fees will stay the same. This means you’d accrue interest on a smaller remaining balance, and pay less overall.

If you end your subscription early, you’ll no longer be covered by the Sunsave Guarantee.

Can I end my subscription early?

We know moving home can be stressful, so you’ll have a dedicated Sunsave customer service representative to help you at every step.

We can’t move your Sunsave system, as it’s tailored to your home. But with Sunsave Plus, we have two options that make it simple for you to move.

1. Transfer your subscription to the new homeowner

You can transfer your system to the new homeowner*, in the same way that you transfer a utility contract.

In countries where solar subscriptions have taken off (such as the US and Germany), passing on the contract has proven to be very popular. For example, when customers move home, the US solar subscription provider Sunrun, sees a 98.5% success rate when transferring their contract to the new homebuyer.

*Subject to acceptance. The new homeowner will need to pass the same eligibility requirements as any new Sunsave Plus customer.

Alternatively, you can include the value of your solar & battery system in the sale price of your home and make a full early repayment either before the sale or using the proceeds from the sale. There are no additional charges or hidden fees for this and you do not need to repay any future interest or monitoring and maintenance fees.

Research from WWF & Scottish Power found that solar increases the value of a house by 0.5% to 2.0%. This study excludes the impact of batteries which would likely increase value further.

A Rightmove study found that increasing a home’s EPC rating raised the value of that home. Adding solar to a home typically increases an EPC by one level, and the study found that increasing EPC from D to C resulted in an average increase of 3%, or £11,157.

What happens if I move home?

Sunsave Plus is available now. Answer some quick and easy questions using our online questionnaire for a free quote and savings estimate. 

When can I get Sunsave Plus?

Sunsave Plus

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Do you have questions about solar panels, batteries or installation? We're experts on all things Solar and battery related and hope you find our answers helpful.

Solar panels UK frequently asked questions

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Contact us

A survey is when our technicians make a full assessment of your home, including roof space, shading, cable runs and scaffolding structure. It helps us validate your quote and predict how much money you’ll save. We’ll also discuss where to install your battery and inverter.

What is a survey?

We need to survey your home to ensure that we can deliver the system we’ve designed for you at the price we’ve quoted. It helps to avoid any surprises or unexpected costs when it comes to installation day.

Why do I need a survey?

You can share your home for surveying in your customer account. We ask a couple of questions, and request a series of photos. This takes about 10 minutes and you can do it at any time.

We’ll then review your photos, usually on the same day.

How do I complete the survey and how long does it take?

The survey is free and there’s no commitment to move forward with your installation afterwards.

Does a survey commit me to anything and are there any costs?

We’ll send you a finalised price and contract, which you can discuss with your sales specialist. If you want to go ahead with your installation, we’ll ask you to sign a contract. We can typically install your system in 3 to 6 weeks, and we’ll work with you to find a date that fits your schedule.