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There are a number of solar installers that operate in the UK. Some solar panel installers provide their services UK-wide and others operate only locally – both should be considered if you’re considering installing solar panels.
With over 2,000 solar panel installers to choose from, this plays to the homeowner’s advantage allowing for price and service comparison. However, the cheapest isn’t always the best when it comes to solar panels. The best solar panel installers hold a Microgeneration Certification Scheme (MCS) certificate, have good customer reviews and don’t have any hidden costs.
Glow Green is one of the UK’s leading solar panel installers with over 10 years of experience. Our researchers have extensively reviewed Glow Green, focusing on its installation process, customer service and average costs.
Glow Green is a solar panel installer that operates nationwide in the UK. The installer has a quick and easy quote process that provides quotes for all-size homes. It has over 1,700 trained and accredited engineers who install its five different product services and, overall, Glow Green receives excellent customer reviews. The solar panel installer will be with you from the first point of contact right through to the installation process, at which point you’ll receive a five-year workmanship warranty.
Glow Green was founded in 2011, initially specialising in energy-efficient boilers. Glow Green focuses on energy-efficient home improvements and has since expanded its services to include a wide variety of energy-efficient products. It’s the first UK-based company to offer solar photovoltaic (PV) panels, solar battery storage, electric vehicle (EV) chargers, air conditioning and heat pumps all under one roof.
Since its expansion, Glow Green has become one of the UK’s leading suppliers operating nationwide. The company has over 1,700 fully-trained engineers who install products from its various categories in UK homes. Its solar panels come with up to 30-year warranties and all installations are protected with up to five years of workmanship warranty.
Glow Green supplies and installs only energy-efficient products in the UK. It was shortlisted for the National Energy Efficiency Awards in 2020 and won the South West Energy Efficiency Awards in 2020. The company offers financing options for all of its products, including solar panels, and has an excellent Trustpilot rating with mostly satisfied customer reviews.
Glow Green is a leading UK solar panel installer. The company helps homeowners to figure out which type of solar panel system their house requires, supplies quotes and installs the array.
According to our researchers, customers can acquire quotes via a form on Glow Green’s website, at which point you can select your house type and desired solar panel system size.
A member of the Glow Green team will then call to discuss the options available, including financing. The company is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) as a credit broker and works with a panel of lenders who supply finance for boilers, solar PV panels, battery storage, air conditioning and EV charger installations. You can discuss this with the Glow Green team to find out how the finances will work for your specific situation at this stage. All applications will be subject to application, financial circumstances and borrowing history.
You can choose from one of Glow Green’s solar systems, which include products from leading solar manufacturers, including JA Solar, Trina, Tesla, PureDrive and Perlight Solar.
All of its solar panel systems come with a five-year workmanship warranty in addition to the product and performance warranty supplied by your solar panel manufacturer.
Once you’ve agreed you’d like to go ahead with the installation, you’ll pay a £200 refundable holding deposit.
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Prior to installation, you’ll be asked to take some basic photos of your roof, so that installers can access the job at hand. A prearranged installation call will be made, at which point you can discuss what will happen on the day and any issues. If your photos reveal any obstacles that could affect the installation process your quote may be adjusted up or down. If you decide not to proceed, Glow Green will refund your £200 deposit. If you go ahead with installation – you’ll now need to pay a 25 per cent deposit.
Glow Green will book your solar panel installation with one of its Microgeneration Certification Scheme (MCS)-accredited engineers for a time that suits you. On average, installation should take place within two to four weeks from when the necessary paperwork was signed; the installation process takes around one to two days to complete. Glow Green will also arrange approvals from the National Grid so you can sell any surplus energy you produce via the Smart Export Guarantee (SEG). 14 days prior to your installation, Glow Green will ask for a second deposit – at this point, you’ll have paid 60 per cent of the total cost.
On the day of installation, scaffolding will be erected a few days ahead of your installation date. Your solar panels will be fitted to the roof. An inverter will be installed in your home and connected via a cable to your electricity supply. You’ll be given your MCS handover pack, which is needed for joining the SEG scheme.
When it comes to the cost of solar panels, it can vary by quite a large amount. It largely depends on what size solar panel system your home requires. Typically, the average UK home is likely to install a 4kW system and this roughly costs around £5,500.
Glow Green caters for a wide range of solar panel system sizes from 2kW to 8kW or more systems. When our researchers used Glow Green’s quote form on their website, we found it to be very user-friendly and transparent.
The form gives options to select the type of property, system size and whether you’d like quotes for just solar panels, solar panels with a battery or just a solar battery.
The prices below are average costs based on the solar panel quotes provided via Glow Green’s website.
| House type | Average cost |
|---|---|
| Two-bed house | £4,950 |
| Three-bed house | £5,950 |
| Four-bed house | £7,200 |
Glow Green has a price match guarantee and it will match prices like-for-like.
Our researchers called the Glow Green team and were pleased to discover that their customer service was friendly and helpful.
Within just a few rings, our researcher was able to speak to a member of Glow Green’s office team. The team member was extremely knowledgeable and was able to answer questions relating to the installation process and warranties. We were also reassured that Glow Green is on hand to help customers even after the installation is complete.
Both customers and non-customers can contact Glow Green via their website email form or phone number.
Phone number: 0808 506 9075
Office hours:
Monday to Thursday: 8am to 8pm
Friday: 8am to 6pm
Saturday: 9am to 5pm
Sunday: Closed
Glow Green receives outstanding customer reviews and scores 4.3 out of five stars on Trustpilot. 71 per cent of those reviews were rated five stars, with many customers praising Glow Green’s customer service as well as its quick and easy installation process.
Although Glow Green receives an excellent Trustpilot rating, there were some negative reviews – a lot of which flagged similar issues. Some customers reported that their DNO (District Network Operator) permission did not coincide with their installation date – this means you will have limited use of your solar panels until the DNO application is complete.
“Five stars easily for Glow Green on the installation of 13 solar panels. Excellent management of the whole process from Ben Jennings and the installation team were first class – reliable, efficient and great quality of workmanship on installing.”
“I was looking for more than a 10kW solar system and contacted Glow Green. I spoke to Jamie Lewis – a professional with thorough knowledge and exceptional communication. He explained all my options very patiently and in detail. I went ahead with the order straight away. The whole installation journey was outlined very clearly and went exactly as planned. Perfect installation with excellent customer service! I was very impressed with the overall experience and referred three other friends. All three went ahead with the order too. Thanks to the excellent team!”
“Glow Green has installed my solar panels without DNO permission to connect. This has resulted in me not being issued a DNO confirmation and being unable to set up an export tariff. Also, with a system that isn’t supposed to be exporting I’m unsure if it’s safe. The DNO has sent me a copy of their email saying no permission to connect. The whole service is poor do not expect any help or to speak to anyone who knows anything after you’ve paid your deposit. This was a G99 application and needed prior approval.”
Glow Green has stated that the DNO can sometimes be delayed but this is outside of Glow Green’s control. The delay can be a result of local issues.
Overall, Glow Green is a reliable and trustworthy solar panel installer. Our researchers especially liked the fact that you can receive quotes within seconds without needing to speak to any pushy salespeople.
We found Glow Green’s prices to be fair and in line with the average cost of solar panel installation. Contacting Glow Green’s customer service was quick and hassle-free. The installation process is streamlined and doesn’t overcomplicate what can be a tricky process to navigate, and the company appears to be very supportive at every step of the way. While Glow Green received excellent customer reviews on Trustpilot, there were a few discrepancies relating to DNO that we discovered in some customer reviews – though these have since been resolved.
To carry out our solar panel installer review, our researchers considered various factors. We reviewed Glow Green’s installation process considering the quote process, installation and aftercare as well as the warranty provided. Our researchers did this through mystery shopping to ensure we gathered a fair and accurate response. We also focused on the costs from the quotes provided as well as looking at customer reviews to find out whether customers received a good experience with this installer in order to establish what type of reputation the company has.
