There are dents in the roof and solar panels right behind the air conditioner.
Some weeks ago, I was cruising the wilds of social media and found a solar thread causing a stir. The victim of a shoddy solar installation was seeking help, and of course, a few comedians were making light of the misfortune.
I waded in to try and help this hapless punter. We’ll call him George. A few of the comments were being directed at SolarQuotes, and I wanted to get to the bottom of the issue.
Setting a Scene (For Murder)
The original complaint looked like this :
Hey guys, had solar installed a few weeks ago, the installers damaged my roof, put a huge dent in it, dented the ribs. They also ran conduit over the garage wall which i am not happy about. They went up through my eaves and I suppose out of the roof, now I have a leak in that exact same spot in my bedroom. The panels aren’t even put up nicely, horizontal and vertical panels all over the place and they put it in front of the air con unit which creates a shade I believe this to be crap, beyond crap.
179 comments later… I’ve picked out a few and changed the names to protect the guilty.
Matthew
- Was it through a sales company offering “tier 1” solar panels?
Mark
Luke
- They were tier 2…even better… double the tier for the same money..there’s a slogan…get double the tier for no extra haha
John
- Definitely looks like a solar sales company job, so yeah, it’ll end up in tears.
Now for some context, “Tier 1” in the solar industry isn’t about panel quality; it’s a financial gauge, a proxy for whether they might be around to honour a long warranty. For consumers it’s a tricky metric to rely on, as even industry leaders like Suntech and Sunpower have faced financial instability. Don’t be misled by the term.
George (the solar-owner)
- This is a highly recommended company, from Solar Quotes
John
- George, actually they host reviews on the site, like Google does, but not all of them are recommended.
Paul
- if they’re highly rated on SolarQuotes, did you give feedback?
Ringo
- George, contact SolarQuotes. They will help you get it sorted
Bill
- Hi George. Our company works with SolarQuotes. I’d back them to help you get this one sorted. I doubt they’d be happy with the quality on this one, and I’m sure they’ll go in to bat for you with the company that installed it, or even engage a different contractor to fix it.
Ben
- Our company has fixed up a job done by a company recommended by SolarQuotes. Company went under, so they asked us to head out and fix it up. Turned out to be a faulty smart meter, so nothing too serious. Solar Quotes paid the bill on behalf of the customer. Just thought I’d mention that to George. It doesn’t hurt to give them a call to ask.
Panel jammed behind an air conditioner? Really? Looks to me like they’ve just run rails through from the front without cutting them & putting more legs in.
The Good Installer Guarantee
It sounds too good to be true, but we promise that if you act on quotes received through the SolarQuotes process, the job will be done right. If the installation turns out to be shoddy or the system doesn’t do what it says on the tin, we’ll get it fixed, even if it means engaging somebody else. Of course, there are a few conditions, but it’s something we’re pretty proud of. Why? Because we seldom ever have to pay out on this promise. The vetting process works, and so it becomes a self-reinforcing system. We couldn’t afford to offer this assurance if it didn’t work.
The SolarQuotes Network
Opting to get quotes independently? Our guarantee doesn’t apply, but we still care about your experience. If one of our approved installer network isn’t up to scratch, then we really want to know. Quoted through us or not, we’ll see that the installer does the right thing, and if they refuse, they’re gone. The users of our site are valuable; we curate our Installer Network for everyone’s best interest, and we just won’t do business with bad actors.
External conduit is sometimes a necessity, but often, it’s just the calling card for rushed installers.
Understanding SolarQuotes Reviews
Sadly, I think George has confused an installer that we have reviews of, with an installer we approve of. Despite the black-and-white warning at the top of the page, (Redacted) isn’t our client, and George’s decision to seek a quote from them directly puts him on his own. We provide resources like guides to ACCC rights, but taking action on his problems becomes his responsibility.
Keep an eye out for a more detailed explanation of review scores in a separate article coming up soon, but until then, keep sorting reviews by the lowest score; it’s a great way to see how the customer service team works, even if the customers are unreasonable.
One portrait, one landscape with decorative external conduit.
Security footage shows a bloke walking in the box gutter and panels being dragged across the parapet wall.
We Will Try To Help
So, at this point, I reached out to George and got a fuller picture of the problem. After consulting the SQ backend, I found his wife’s email and confirmed she’d received three quotes. I talked to him about how he sourced his own quote, and he forwarded a copy, which he said wasn’t the cheapest. For the price he paid, it should have been a decent job.
A suite number suggests a serviced office.
George has made progress in getting the installation issues resolved, but only after removing some negative reviews. I’m glad to report that a new installer has admitted it was a dog’s breakfast. The array has been rearranged, and the appropriate repairs have been made, with another roofer scheduled to replace the dented cladding.
Note: the ‘Australia-Wide-Ranking’ shows a 4.4 star average isn’t a great average score relative to other solar companies reviewed on the site. Also the ‘Approved’ Seller badge refers to the Clean Energy Council’s ‘New Energy Tech Consumer Code‘ scheme.
So, How Did It All Go Wrong?
With 15 years of producing useful solar content, SolarQuotes is highly trusted by search engines. So when you search almost any Aussie solar company, you’ll find we host reviews of them. We try hard to put the right information in front of the customer’s eyeballs. However, it’s still up to the brain behind those eyeballs to comprehend what’s being explained.
Get It Right The First Time
Our vetting is pretty thorough, but let’s be honest, everyone makes mistakes. If your installer has a terrible day with a new apprentice, things can go pear-shaped. So if your energy yield is down, the roof leaks, or the jargon is complex, we’ll be there to deal with it. When you receive a quote through our website, we have skin in the game and if mistakes happen, we’ll ensure it’s put right.
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