Finding a good solar installer in Runcorn

Three checks that take ten minutes

1. MCS. The installer search shows whether a firm is certified for solar PV specifically. Without MCS certification you cannot get export payments, and the Warm Homes schemes and lenders will not accept the work.
2. A consumer code. Firms selling to households should belong to one approved by the Chartered Trading Standards Institute: for solar, usually the Renewable Energy Consumer Code or HIES. Look the firm up on the code's own site; it sets rules on contracts and deposits and offers free dispute resolution.
3. Companies House. How long the company has existed, who its directors are, and whether its accounts are up to date.

Questions for the survey

• What will you fix to, and how? On a pitched roof: brackets to the rafters. On a flat roof: ballasted frames or fixings through the covering, and who guarantees the waterproofing afterwards.
• Will you, or a structural engineer, check that the roof can take the load?
• How did you work out the predicted output, and what shade factor did you use?
• Will the system be connected and then notified to the network operator, or does it need approval first?
• Who will do the work, and whose name goes on the MCS certificate?

A quote you can compare

Make and model of panels, inverter and mounting system; system size and predicted yearly output; scaffolding or access, roof work, electrics, network notification and certificates; warranties and who insures the workmanship warranty; deposit, how it is protected, and the payment stages. Compare the price per kW with the North West averages and the output with PVGIS for your roof.

Two invented flat-roof quotes

Two firms quote for the same 8 m by 5 m flat roof. The prices are made up to show the method; the layouts and outputs come from the planner's rules and PVGIS for Runcorn.

Firm A's steep rows look like a pitched roof turned flat, but they fit fewer panels and stand above the 0.6 m that permitted development allows, so they would need planning permission. Firm B's low pairs cost more in total and less per kW, make more in a year and stay within the limit. Ask any firm proposing steep rows on a flat roof why, and run the layout through the flat-roof planner; compare the prices with costs and the outputs with the first-year sums.

Local knowledge worth asking about

A firm that works in Runcorn should know that SP Energy Networks runs the cables across Halton, that five conservation areas sit on the Runcorn side, at Halton Village, Higher Runcorn, Weston Village, Daresbury and Moore, and that flat-roof arrays inside them need the council's prior approval. Ask whether your house is in one. A firm that cannot answer may still be competent, but it should find out before it quotes, not after.

From signature to switch-on

Expect a deposit, protected under the consumer code's rules, then a date for access and any roof work, the fitting, the electrical connection and commissioning. On a flat roof, ask for photographs of the covering before the frames go down and after, and for the ballast plan to be left with you. For a small system the installer connects first and tells SP Energy Networks afterwards; a larger one, or one with a battery that takes the total over the limit, waits for approval, as grid connection explains. Pay in stages that follow the work.

At handover

• The MCS certificate, the electrical installation certificate and the network notification or approval.
• On a flat roof: the frame system's name, the ballast weights and positions, and who stands behind the covering where it was worked on.
• Datasheets and warranties for the panels, inverter and frames, and the insurer of the workmanship warranty.
• A walk through the inverter's app, so you can check the output against the monthly figures later.

When to walk away

• The price is only good if you sign today.
• Someone claims to be from the council or "the government scheme" without an application behind it.
• The quote names no panel or inverter model, or no mounting system on a flat roof.
• The output promised is well above PVGIS for your roof, with no explanation.
• Most of the money is wanted before any work starts.

Changing your mind

A contract agreed at home, or anywhere other than the firm's premises, can usually be cancelled within 14 days without a reason. If you ask the firm to start inside that time and then cancel, it can charge for what it has done. Citizens Advice explains the rules.

Keep reading

• Costs
• Grid connection
• Flat-roof planner
• Words explained

Where the figures come from

1. MCS: search for a certified installer
2. Renewable Energy Consumer Code: members and rules
3. HIES: consumer protection for home energy systems
4. TrustMark: registered tradespeople
5. MCS: The Solar PV Standard (Installation), MIS 3002 v6.0
6. Citizens Advice: cancelling a service
7. EU JRC PVGIS 5.3: solar output by location, tilt and direction
8. Legislation.gov.uk: GPDO 2015 Schedule 2 Part 14 (solar on homes)
9. Legislation.gov.uk: SI 2026/896, solar permitted development changes (27 August 2026)
10. DESNZ statistics: small-scale solar PV installation costs, 2025/26