STA release new agreement in wake of solar job losses
The Solar Repair Agreement (SRA) has been released by the STA in the wake of recent government cuts to the solar industry, which have led to the closure of a number of firms and the loss of over 1,500 jobs, while also leaving an estimated 1,600 positions at risk.
The STA believes the new agreement, which intends to define the basis of an installers work in order to eliminate confusion, can restore confidence in the secondary solar repair and maintenance market, which it argues is an important system to keep in place, as solar household solar panels can potentially last 30 years or more.
The trade body, which released a recent survey into how subsidy cuts have influenced job losses in the solar industry, suggests that few installers are willing to touch another installer’s systems when they need repairing, due to a fear of becoming liable themselves for hidden faults, which it claims can lead to spiralling costs to the consumer.
Chris Roberts, Technical Specialist at the Solar Trade Association, hopes the Solar Repair Agreement will help the industry tackle the issue of secondary repairs and maintenance.
“There is a problem in the solar sector where faulty systems don’t get fixed when installers stop trading. Many installers naturally avoid other companies’ work, especially when they suspect a bad quality install,” he said.
“Our new repair agreement hopes to put an end to this by clearly setting out what the customer should expect from a repair, as well as what the installer is responsible for during the work. We hope this will lead to improved confidence in the secondary maintenance and repair market.”
