My solar installer has gone out of business: who looks after my solar panels now?

The installer's number rings out, their website has gone, and now the inverter is showing a fault. Or someone has rung to say the firm that fitted your panels has gone bust and they can take over.

Solar installer gone out of business? Who looks after your panels now

Any competent solar company can test, service and repair a system it didn't fit. Your panels, inverter and any battery keep working whether or not the company that put them up still exists.

It makes no difference to us who fitted your panels or whether that company is still trading. We service, repair and clean systems we didn't install, on homes, businesses and farms across the UK from our base in Warrington.

What you may lose is the installer's workmanship guarantee. If they were MCS certified or a member of the Renewable Energy Consumer Code, it should have been insurance-backed, so you may still be able to claim through the insurer. On an older system it may already have run out.

What to check when your solar installer has gone out of business

• Have they really stopped trading? In a 2024 Which? survey, 6% of solar owners said a cold caller had claimed their installer had stopped trading when it hadn't. In one case Which? reported, it turned out to be a scam. What to do: search the firm on Companies House, try the phone number and email on your paperwork, and check the MCS installer search before you agree anything with someone who rang you.
• Your manufacturer warranties. The warranties on the panels, inverter and battery come from the companies that made them, not from the installer, so they don't end when the installer closes. The Renewable Energy Consumer Code requires members to pass these on, with the importer or distributor's details where the maker is outside the EU. What to do: find the warranty papers, or photograph the labels on the inverter and panels so the maker and model can be traced.
• The workmanship guarantee. This covers faults caused by how the system was put in. Under the Code it lasts at least two years and passes to a new owner, and members must insure it so the full term is honoured if they stop trading. MCS asks the same of its certified installers. What to do: find the insurance-backed guarantee in your handover pack and note the insurer and the dates.
• What the insurance actually covers. Taking IWA as an example, you can only claim once the installer has ceased to trade, and cover runs for the shorter of the installer's guarantee and the policy period. Only the products named on the policy are covered, and there's no cover at all if the installer never registered your job and paid the premium. What to do: contact the insurer named on the policy before anyone starts repair work, and follow its claim steps.
• Your MCS certificate. If it's lost, the MCS helpdesk on 0333 103 8130 can tell you whether a certificate exists for your address. It can send the current owner a copy for an admin fee, with proof of address. What to do: ask for a copy now, so you have it before you need it.
• Using a different firm. The panel manuals we checked tie their warranties to how the panels are installed and handled, not to which company does the work. LONGi, for example, says drilling the module frame can invalidate its warranty. What to do: ask any new firm for its own guarantee on the repair in writing, as the Code says it should give, and keep every invoice and report.
• A deposit on an unfinished job. The Code also requires members to insure deposits, so another Code member can complete the contract at no additional cost if the first one stops trading. What to do: look in your contract and paperwork for the deposit insurance details.

What we see on real jobs

When we take on a system someone else fitted, we go over it the same way as any service. We look at the panels for cracks, hot spots, debris and anything nesting. We test the strings, insulation, earthing and isolators against how the system was originally commissioned.

We also check the inverter's error logs, firmware, cooling and remaining life, because inverters are the most common thing to fail. Then the rails and fixings, the DC cabling and connectors, and the monitoring data against what the system should be making for the time of year. You get a written report, which starts a new service history for a system that has lost its old one.

If it needs a new inverter, we keep some in stock and source others for the job.

We'd want the same for our own customers. Tony Beckett, our director, says our "workmanship warranty is normally two years" with insurance behind it, and "we can do it from two to 10 years." It is underwritten by IWA, and we're a RECC member (00075024). Our accreditations are listed on our about page.

What it costs

Tony puts a routine home service at "around about two to 300", so about £200 to £300. If the inverter needs replacing, that is £1,200 to £2,000 fitted, depending on the inverter.

After that first visit, the Energy Saving Trust recommends an inspection every one to two years, and the MCS maintenance schedule is the minimum. A solar health check is the place to start.

When to call someone, and what to send

First, check the monitoring isn't just offline. A monitoring or wi-fi fault can make generation look wrong when the panels are fine.

Ring someone that week if:

• the inverter shows an error code, or generation drops sharply or stops
• one section of the system is producing nothing, because DC connectors are a known fire risk point
• generation drops suddenly on one string and you can hear birds on the roof

A gradual drop that's worse in dry spells is usually dirt, and a slow decline over many years is normal ageing. Both can wait for a routine service or a clean.

Send these on WhatsApp before the first visit:

• a photo of the inverter label, so we know the exact model
• a monitoring screenshot, if you have a login
• the MCS certificate, handover pack and any guarantee documents you can find
• a photo of the panels from the ground
• your postcode

Key points

Check before you believe a cold caller. Look the installer up on Companies House and try the contact details on your paperwork.

Your system can still be looked after. Any competent solar company can service and repair it, including one that didn't fit it.

Manufacturer warranties carry on. They come from the maker, not the installer, and they depend on how the system is treated, not who services it.

The workmanship guarantee may be insured. Find the policy in your handover pack and claim through the insurer, within its dates.

Questions people also ask

Installer gone and not sure where you stand? Book a solar health check, or send us a photo of the inverter label on WhatsApp.