The answer
What should a buyer ask about an existing solar installation?
Ask who owns the panels and get the installation certificate, equipment details, warranties and recent generation records. Check how any export payments work and whether you will have access to the monitoring account after you move in.
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Do the panels belong to the seller?
Some older systems involve a lease or another business's rights over the roof. Ask your solicitor to check the agreements rather than assuming the panels are included without conditions.
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Get the information needed to use them
Ask for the system size, MCS certificate, inverter details, safety switch locations, warranties and any fault history. Make sure you can access the monitoring account.
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Will export payments transfer to you?
Feed-in Tariff and Smart Export Guarantee arrangements may need separate steps when a home is sold. Check the meter, account and paperwork before completion.
What paperwork should come with the panels?
Request commissioning certificates, installer details, warranties, inverter information and evidence of who owns the panels. Check whether any lease, finance or export contract transfers with the property. An app screenshot from one sunny day cannot establish the system's long-term condition.
Look for a generation history and recent faults, then compare it with the system's age and expected output. Confirm access to monitoring after completion. If a battery is included, obtain its model, usable capacity and warranty separately from the panels.
What to check next
Your next steps
Where we checked the facts
Check the original information.
These official pages back up the rules and technical details above. They can change, so check them again before spending money or starting work.
Apply this to your own property
Could solar work on your roof?
A free survey checks your roof and electricity use to see whether solar panels, a battery or both may fit your property.