MCS guarantee question.

[daveg]

Hi I am new to this forum which I found researching solar panels and I have learnt a lot reading the many threads.

I am looking at getting a system from a MCS installer and have been wondering about how the guarantees work in practice eg if an inverter with a 5 year guarantee fails after 4 years is the installer expected to diagnose the fault, get a replacement and fit it with out charging or would it be down to me to deal with the manufacturer and pay to have the replacement fitted?

 

[binky]

The guarantee is with the manufacturer, but they usually pay for installation with the original installer. I always provided support for any issues, free of charge to the customer. As the supplier of the gear, it was my responsibility, plus MCS insist you provide support to customers for a reasonable amount of time. 5 years from memory, but it's just good customer service at the end of the day. Be wary of companies that ' phoenix ' every couple of years, or change names slightly, for there lies a dubious business.

 

[daveg]

Thanks for the clarification binky - that fits with what the installer said, he is a long standing local electrician with a very good reputation and very honest. It is a funny situation but I am trying to find a way of relieving the installer from the obligation of providing ongoing support for the battery and inverter but he told me the MCS would not allow it.

The installer usually on fits components from a few manufacturers that he knows well an provide good technical support, sadly this comes at a price. I would like to use a Solis inverter and a Purestorage battery. The installer is happy to fit them if I supplied them so he would not be involved in any warranty claims but I would of course then have to pay VAT on them.

 

[binky]

what we fit tends to be governed by which wholesaler we prefer to use, plus we also like to fit gear we have knowledge of, know the little foibles of.

If you supply the gear the direct line of responsibility is between you and the manfacturer, but even then, I would be happy to work on said gear in the event of a fault, provided you did the running around organising a replacement unit. As it happens Solis offer extendable warranty upto 20 years, so to me, I would say you are very unlikely to have a problem within normal time scales. I've also fitted quite a few Solis inverters, and have no real problems with them.

What you could offer your installer, to keep MCS happy, is a disclaimer in writing saying you accept responsibility for the inverter and battery. Or just offer to pay for any problems - might be cheaper than the vat. Might also be worth asking Solis and Purestorage if they have registered contractors that can help if anything goes wrong. There's also shed load of Facebook pages dedicated to certain solar brands which are a mine of information if you have any problems.

 

[daveg]

Thanks binky for the guidance. Solis seem to have a good reputation for support. Purestorage have some mixed reviews about support but that may have been before they greatly increased their support team. I will have a look on facebook. I am an electronic engineer so am confident dealing with these sort of guarantee issues it they arise. I find that, usually, if a system is designed properly it will either fail early on or last years without a problem unless a software update goes wrong.

The installer didn't think a disclaimer would work. He is probably worried I wouldn't honour it and complain to MCS if a problem arose. The VAT on the two items will be about £600 so paying to sort out problems would be fine. I was going to call both helplines to see what the response times were like so asking about local registered contractors is a good excuse for the call.