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 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.

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 up to 103%.

These figures are 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.

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. We use premium kit, and all of our Sunsave Standard systems come with a two-year workmanship warranty. From site survey to scaffolding, we’ll take care of everything. Once we’ve started, your installation will be complete in a few days.

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.

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.

Adding a battery to a solar panel system means you can store excess electricity that you would otherwise have exported to the grid.

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.

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. HEIS also provide a fair and independent arbitration mechanism if you believe that we haven’t delivered the installation experience you expected.

TrustMark

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.

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’re authorised and regulated by the FCA to provide solar panels, batteries, installation, insurance, monitoring and maintenance through a monthly subscription.
• 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.

Most people see solar panels 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:

• price
• system size
• property location
• roof direction and angle
• export tariffs
• cost of electricity
• weather
• solar panel quality

For example, some properties might recoup the cost of their system in as little as 5 years, whereas others might take closer to 15.

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