Take out a loan to cover the domestic solar panel UK cost
• If you don’t have the capital then the second option is to get a loan to pay for them. This method will allow for a considerably longer term investment but will still offer some reward and offer the comfort of protection from rising energy costs. The loan and cost of the system should break even within the lifetime of the system if worked correctly. We strongly advise that you contact only those lenders that are authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). With this in mind, The World Renewable Energy Association have sourced reputable and FCA approved finance providers for our members to contact directly. For a list of those renewable energy finance providers, please visit our Approved Lending Partners page.
Buying solar panels outright with cash
• If you have the capital available and you wish to invest you can attain a reasonable investment with the Feed-in Tariff. You can save a reasonable amount of money on your bills over 20 years and insulate yourself from future energy price increases. You will be looking at income and savings of roughly £266 per year from a 4Kw system, with larger installations seeing significantly greater savings over its lifetime.
Solar Panel Financial Information
Finance options for Solar Panels
There are a number of companies offering finance for solar technology in the United Kingdom. Finance, in the form of loans and leasing agreements, is available for domestic, commercial and industrial installations, in both the private and public sectors. Finance for renewable energy technologies allows customers to avoid large upfront costs and make payments out of the income from any Feed-in tariffs, as well as energy bill savings.
Finance may be offered on a range of bases, each offering varying levels of financial risk and reward, as well as varying interest rates. Typically, the finance company will provide the money to fund the cost of installation in return for payments spread over a period of time. Depending on the type of agreement, the client will most likely own the technology from the outset.
The arrangements offered by finance companies will vary, and each company will offer different advice. It is therefore advisable to obtain quotes and agreement terms from a range of companies. They should be based on clients’ energy needs and financial situation. Caution should also be taken when calculating one’s ability to make repayments, as the returns offered by some renewable technologies depend in large part on the weather. Remember that if using finance arrangements this may impact on your future benefits and savings from having the solar panels and this should be carefully considered.
It is best to factor in all costs and any money you may receive for energy produced to calculate how much your solar panels can save you and what the return on your investment is. In the short term it may seem expensive however as a long-term investment you will make many savinsg, and this can be worth the initial cost of having them installed. If you were eligible for the feed in tariff which ended on the 30th March 2019 then you are likely to see a faster return on your investment and will receive the payments for 20 years (but at scheme end this was fairly small in real terms).
You can save more on energy bills by making small changes to your daily routine and using the most of your electricity during daylight hours whilst your solar panels are most effective, this will help your saving on energy bills. While the saving varies on average most households save at minimum, £100 a year on energy bills.
Please look here for some UK companies offering finance for renewable technologies.