A customer who purchased a solar installation package through a Costco deal reported a "bait-and-switch" attempt and other major issues with the subcontracted installer, raising questions about...

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    "summary": "A customer who purchased a solar installation package through a Costco deal reported a \"bait-and-switch\" attempt and other major issues with the subcontracted installer, raising questions about the quality of Costco's installation partners.",
    "category": "implementation",
    "comments": [
      {
        "url": "https://www.reddit.com/r/SolarUK/comments/1w7wz5a/comment/p7y5zj5/",
        "depth": 0,
        "score": 28,
        "author": "Begalldota",
        "excerpt": "I appreciate that you put an AI disclaimer, but I promise you that AI turning this into an over elaborate wall of text did not make it more readable in any shape or form.",
        "posted_at": "2026-09-05T10:32:24.000Z",
        "author_url": "https://www.reddit.com/user/Begalldota/"
      },
      {
        "url": "https://www.reddit.com/r/SolarUK/comments/1w7wz5a/comment/p7y63nk/",
        "depth": 0,
        "score": 5,
        "author": "DanielLorey",
        "excerpt": "Tbf you didn’t need to use AI to tell them to install what you’ve agreed on the contract or get lost.\n\n Glad you got it sorted. We’ve got 32x 515W DMEGC panels and love them, but that’s what we agreed 😆",
        "posted_at": "2026-09-05T10:33:20.000Z",
        "author_url": "https://www.reddit.com/user/DanielLorey/"
      },
      {
        "url": "https://www.reddit.com/r/SolarUK/comments/1w7wz5a/comment/p7y9rfq/",
        "depth": 0,
        "score": 5,
        "author": "txe4",
        "excerpt": "You should obviously stand firm on the contract to be delivered as-agreed and I've no fundamental argument with this.\n\n I do think that people make too much of the differences between panels. In the real world I have brand new panels and two sets of ancient ones - one a fancy named brand, one a non-name - and there just ain't that much difference.\n\n OP is still right to stand by what they signed f",
        "posted_at": "2026-09-05T11:02:01.000Z",
        "author_url": "https://www.reddit.com/user/txe4/"
      },
      {
        "url": "https://www.reddit.com/r/SolarUK/comments/1w7wz5a/comment/p7yb01m/",
        "depth": 0,
        "score": 5,
        "author": "External-Ad-3680",
        "excerpt": "I've been using Ai in various guises for a few years and use it heavily for work, it saves me hours every day.\n\n I have a Solar project for my upcoming install and it's helped me massively with the 12 quotes I got (from 6 companies)\n\n As with all Ai, I'd heavily caveat any use, and I always sense check every important output and use various sources.",
        "posted_at": "2026-09-05T11:11:13.000Z",
        "author_url": "https://www.reddit.com/user/External-Ad-3680/"
      },
      {
        "url": "https://www.reddit.com/r/SolarUK/comments/1w7wz5a/comment/p7y5ldc/",
        "depth": 0,
        "score": 2,
        "author": "ByteTheBit",
        "excerpt": "Sorry to hear you had so many issues during install. Did you get multiple quotes? How did the pricing of the company you used compare to the others? I bet you’re relieved it’s all installed and can finally relax!",
        "posted_at": "2026-09-05T10:29:10.000Z",
        "author_url": "https://www.reddit.com/user/ByteTheBit/"
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      {
        "url": "https://www.reddit.com/r/SolarUK/comments/1w7wz5a/comment/p7y67m5/",
        "depth": 0,
        "score": 2,
        "author": "pisscat101",
        "excerpt": "I am at the early stages of gaining quotes. Can you let me know who the contract was with so I can avoid them?",
        "posted_at": "2026-09-05T10:34:13.000Z",
        "author_url": "https://www.reddit.com/user/pisscat101/"
      },
      {
        "url": "https://www.reddit.com/r/SolarUK/comments/1w7wz5a/comment/p7y9c9u/",
        "depth": 0,
        "score": 2,
        "author": "TheBigM72",
        "excerpt": "This is really down to Fresh Solar, the guy who set them up has a history of opening and closing businesses.\n\n My experience with the installer I went with was much better.",
        "posted_at": "2026-09-05T10:58:50.000Z",
        "author_url": "https://www.reddit.com/user/TheBigM72/"
      },
      {
        "url": "https://www.reddit.com/r/SolarUK/comments/1w7wz5a/comment/p80cs5f/",
        "depth": 0,
        "score": 2,
        "author": "johnbbeta",
        "excerpt": "thanks for sharing. appreciated.",
        "posted_at": "2026-09-05T17:32:55.000Z",
        "author_url": "https://www.reddit.com/user/johnbbeta/"
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    ],
    "evidence": [
      "[post] Quote: £9600 (awesome deal from costco that included scaffolding, G99 application, and bird mesh).",
      "[post] My contract explicitly stated 16x 475W Eurener panels. The installers had shown up with 470W DMEGC panels. They were trying to quietly install cheaper, lower-capacity Chinese panels instead of the premium European-assembled ones I paid for.",
      "[comment u/Flat___________] OP, did you contact Costco and tell them what their installer did?"
    ],
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    "post_date": "2026-09-05T10:22:10.000Z",
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    "post_text": "I finally got my system installed and commissioned this summer. It’s been a massive learning curve, and I wanted to share my experience - specifically the absolute chaos of installation day - to help anyone else currently getting quotes.\n\nThe System & Price\n\nPanels: 16x 475W Eurener (7.6 kWp total)\n\nInverter/Battery: Fox ESS EVO 10 (10kW Inverter All-In-One unit with 10.2kWh Battery)\n\nQuote: £9600 (awesome deal from costco that included scaffolding, G99 application, and bird mesh).\n\nThe Timeline (Patience is required)\n\nWe originally planned for a May installation. Because of the massive 10kW inverter, the DNO approval (G99) took ages. We finally got the green light and scheduled the installation for July.\n\nInstallation Day Fiasco #1: The Lazy Shortcut\n\nThe installers arrived and immediately tried to redesign my system to make their lives easier. I wanted the heavy all-in-one Fox EVO unit installed on the back patio. They didn't want to run the cable through the loft, so they tried to convince me to put it at the front of the house.\n\nTheir excuse? They claimed a long cable run would cause \"slow data transfer\" and app dropouts. When I pushed back, they suggested swapping my contracted all-in-one IP65 weather-rated EVO unit for stacked, modular \"cube\" batteries just so they could fit it in a smaller space at the front. I stood my ground, demanded they stick to the contract, and...",
    "sentiment": "negative",
    "subreddit": "SolarUK",
    "event_date": "2026-07",
    "post_flair": [
      "INFORMATION"
    ],
    "post_title": "7.6kWp Install Journey: DNO Delays, an Installation Day Bait-and-Switch and How AI Saved My Setup",
    "prominence": "core",
    "source_url": "https://www.reddit.com/r/SolarUK/comments/1w7wz5a/76kwp_install_journey_dno_delays_an_installation/",
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