Are Eon Solar Panels Free With Their SolarExchange Scheme?

Energy company Eon have their own free solar panel offer except they charge a one off administration charge of £99. Being a household brand like British Gas they are attracting a lot of interest with their offer as consumers tend to feel safer dealing with recognisable names.

Although a major company in the UK are they offering a good deal compared to the other companies offering free solar panels? There are currently 18 firms offering free solar in the UK so there is a lot more choice than there was a year ago. Eon are the only company to have an upfront fee that they charge everyone regardless of circumstances so why would you choose Eon over another company that are totally free.

They do have a couple of things going for them, firstly they are a recognisable brand and the only other brand name in the market is currently British Gas. Secondly the size of the installation they are offering is up to 3.89kWp which means if your roof is large enough to accommodate the panels you could expect to reduce your bills by a third every year.

What you get from Eon with their free solar offer

Once the panels are installed on your roof Eon predict that you will save in the region of £100 to £180 per year on your electricity bill. The amount you save will depend on the size of the system that you have installed. They provide installations based on the available roof space going from 2.22kW to 3.89kW. This equates to about 12 panels covering approximately 15 square metres or about 170 square feet for their smallest system. Their largest 3.89kW system requires a much larger 28 square metres about 307 square feet which equates to around 22 panels.

Are there any better offers out there?

All of the other companies offering free solar panels do not charge any fees for a standard free installation. The benefit with Eon and British Gas is that they install nationally where most other installers will only install in the closest counties.

The best offer to date appears to be that from Reflex Energy where they not only install for free but also pay you a one off £500 payment once the installation is complete. This offer is however only available to home owners in the Leicestershire area.

If you are looking for a comparable company then British Gas do completely free installations. At the time of writing any new applications are on hold whilst they introduce a new installer. There are also companies that have been quite prominent including A Shade Greener, HomeSun and Isis Solar. The full list of installers can be found on the free installers page.

Why are companies offering solar panels for free?

The reason there are now so many companies supplying free solar installations is purely financial. These are all independent companies that are funding the cost of providing free panels by claiming the feed in tariff payment. These payments are made to the owners of renewable energy systems that generate clean electricity such as solar PV.

By buying you own solar system you could also receive these payments. Although it is a significant investment with average sized systems costing thousands of pounds you will earn your initial investment back through the green tariff payments and savings on your electricity bills.