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Sunsave Plus: what if you can afford the upfront cost of solar?
We explore the potential long-term financial outcome of opting for Sunsave Plus.
Written byCharlie Clissitt
We’re on a mission to make solar accessible for all, which is why our subscription is available at no upfront cost.
However, our product isn’t just designed for people who can’t afford the upfront cost of solar - it offers certain benefits that you wouldn’t necessarily get if you bought solar panels outright.
Even if you’ve got enough cash in the bank, it’s important to be aware of your options so you can make a fully informed decision.
Sunsave Plus is not like other loans
Sunsave Plus is not just a solar loan. Although you gradually pay off the cost of the system like a loan, your solar & battery system is also protected by the Sunsave Guarantee - so you can rest assured your system will keep performing for at least the next 20 years.
We know that concerns about maintenance are a key sticking point for people who aren’t sure about solar. A 2021 study by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) found that 55% of people in the UK who don’t want solar panels attribute their reluctance to maintenance concerns.
We estimate that a solar & battery system in the UK has a 15% chance of requiring maintenance every year across a 20-year period, with three call outs needed on average. This adds not only cost, but also the hassle of finding a reliable installer to help each time.
Sunsave Plus is also an investment in a cash-generating asset - your solar & battery system will immediately start saving you money on your energy bills, and generate additional income from exported electricity.
In many cases, your energy bill savings and export income will exceed the fixed monthly payments, meaning the loan actually results in a net saving - an instant return on your investment.
What’s more, Sunsave Plus is much more flexible than a traditional loan, allowing you to make a full or partial early repayment at any point. This will reduce (or end) your subscription term, and you won’t have to pay any fees or penalties.
Our solar subscription frees up your cash
Sunsave Plus has no upfront cost, meaning any money that you planned to spend on solar panels can be used or invested elsewhere.
For instance, you might want to put the cash in a high-interest savings account, keep it around for emergencies, or spend it on a holiday or home improvement.
Let’s use an illustrative example of £12,000 to see how this works.
Paying upfront
If you were to buy a solar & battery system for £12,000, you would be waiting a number of years before you break even on that initial outlay. It could be as little as five or six years, but may well extend beyond 10 or 15 years (depending on a wide range of factors).
And if you ever need this cash for any other purpose (e.g. an emergency), it wouldn’t be easy to sell your solar system.
Paying via subscription
With a Sunsave Plus system there’s no upfront cost, so you could put your £12,000 into a savings account instead and let the interest compound over time. This rundown of the best savings accounts from MoneySavingExpert shows that you can currently get over 5% interest with various banks.
What’s more, if you ever need this cash for an emergency, you’ll be able to withdraw it from the bank.
As you can see in the chart below, the interest you earn from your £12,000 grows over time (assuming an interest rate of 5% and that you reinvest this money each year) reaching £28,636 after 25 years.
On top of this interest, your Sunsave Plus system also provides immediate savings on your electricity bill. It does this in two ways: by reducing the amount of electricity you buy from the grid, and by exporting your excess electricity to the grid and earning your money. These savings will also grow over time, as the cost of energy bills is likely to increase based on historical trends.
For example, take a four-bedroom family home in Essex using 4,000 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity each year, with a 6 kilowatt-peak (kWp) solar panel system and a 5.2kWh battery. This Sunsave Plus system would cost £23,019 overall (i.e. 240 monthly payments of £96), but across 25 years it would also generate £70,303 of energy bill savings, meaning a net saving of £47,284.
The chart below combines this net saving with the interest you may generate by putting the £12,000 in the bank.
As the chart shows, the combination of energy bill savings with earnings from interest leads to a total net saving of £75,920 after 25 years.
This figure will of course vary based on several factors, including how much money you save initially, the interest rates available, future energy prices, and the size and performance of your solar & battery system.
Sunsave Plus also means peace of mind
Every Sunsave Plus subscription is protected by the Sunsave Guarantee, our comprehensive monitoring & maintenance package.
As previously mentioned, we estimate 15% of solar & battery systems will require maintenance each year, and many homeowners are reluctant to switch to solar without some kind of assurance that their system will keep working.
That’s why we created the Sunsave Guarantee, which is designed to give you total peace of mind for the duration of your subscription. It includes:
- 30-year performance warranty on the solar panels
- A free battery replacement once it performs at less than 70% of its original capacity – which typically happens after 10-12 years
- A free inverter replacement whenever required (usually after 10-12 years)
- 24/7 monitoring of the solar & battery system, including alerting you if something isn’t working
- Troubleshooting of any issues
- Management of any warranty claims
- Insurance provided by Aviva to protect your system against damage, fire, and theft
- Downtime protection - we’ll compensate you for any prolonged period that your system isn’t working as it should.
To find out more, check out our guide to the Sunsave Guarantee.
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Written byCharlie Clissitt
Born in Yorkshire and now living in London, Charlie has been in the renewable energy industry since 2017, having worked as a writer and then editor of green technology advisor The Eco Experts. His work has focussed on educating UK homeowners about a wide range of residential power and heating solutions, including solar panels, storage batteries, heat pumps, infrared panels, and EV chargers.