Where to find firms
Three routes turn up most Manchester installers: the MCS installer search, the map results when you search online, and recommendations from neighbours. The MCS search is the one that matters, because certification is what makes a system eligible for export payments, and it lets you search by postcode for firms certified for solar PV.
Map listings and trade directories are useful for seeing who works near you, but a listing is not a check. Treat every name you find, however you found it, as a firm to verify rather than a firm already vetted. That includes any company that knocks on your door or rings you first.
Busy local firms are not hard to find. The government's 2025/26 cost analysis counted 22,981 solar installations in the North West in a single year (DESNZ), so there is real competition and no reason to accept the first offer.
Five checks before you sign
- MCS certification for solar PV. Search the firm's exact company name on the MCS site. Certification is for a technology, so check it covers solar PV and, if you want one, batteries.
- A consumer code. Most MCS installers belong to the Renewable Energy Consumer Code or HIES. Membership gives you rules on sales practice, deposits and a route to resolve disputes.
- Deposit protection and an insurance-backed workmanship warranty. Ask how your deposit is protected if the firm stops trading, and who honours the workmanship warranty in that case.
- Who does the work. Ask whether the firm's own staff or subcontractors will fit the panels and do the electrical work, and who signs off the installation.
- Company details. Look the business up on Companies House and check the name on the quote matches the name on the MCS certificate.
TrustMark is a quality scheme for trades working in and around the home, and some solar firms are registered with it too. It is worth checking where a firm claims it, but MCS and a consumer code are the two that matter most for solar.
What a Manchester quote must show
A good quote lets you compare firms line by line. Beyond the basics, a Manchester home brings a few items worth seeing in writing.
| Item | Why it matters in Manchester |
|---|---|
| System size in kW and the number of panels | Lets you work out the price per kW and set it against the North West average of £2,021 per kW up to 4 kW. |
| Panel, inverter and any battery models | So you can compare datasheets and warranties, not just prices. |
| Scaffold and access | Front scaffold on a terraced street usually stands on the pavement and needs a council permit: £175 plus £90 per four weeks up to 25 m² (Manchester City Council). |
| Grid route: G98 or G99 | Systems up to 3.68 kW on a single-phase supply connect first and notify SP Electricity North West; larger ones need its agreement first, which takes time. |
| Planning position | Whether the panels stay within the permitted-development limits, and whether your street is one of the city's 35 conservation areas or the house is listed. |
| Expected generation | An MCS estimate in kWh a year. Compare it with the PVGIS figure for your roof in our roof yield explorer. |
| VAT | 0% on installed solar and batteries until 31 March 2027, then 5%. Check the quote states it. |
| Deposit, payment stages and warranties | How much is paid when, how the deposit is protected, and every warranty with its length and who honours it. |
If your quote is above the regional average, the extras above are usually why. Our Manchester cost guide shows the average for each size.
Warning signs
Most firms are straightforward. These signs suggest you should slow down or walk away.
- Pressure to sign today, or a discount that disappears if you wait. A real price is still there next week.
- Talk of a grant that everyone gets. Households that can pay get no grant for solar. The one real scheme in Manchester, the Warm Homes: Local Grant, has strict rules (an EPC of D to G for owners, and for example household income under £36,000) and is applied for through GMCA's own portal, as our funding guide explains.
- Claims to be from the council or the government. If a caller says so, end the call and contact Manchester City Council or GMCA yourself, using details you looked up.
- Savings promised without workings. A credible estimate shows the generation in kWh, your use and the tariffs assumed.
- No address, no company number, or a name that does not match the MCS certificate.
If you agree a contract in your own home, you normally have 14 days to cancel under the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013, and the firm must tell you so in writing.
After the installation
When the work is done you should receive the MCS certificate, the electrical installation certificate, the commissioning record, confirmation that SP Electricity North West has been notified or has agreed the connection, and every warranty document. Keep them together: you need the MCS certificate to apply for export payments, as our guide to export payments explains, and a buyer's solicitor will ask for them if you sell.
If something goes wrong, raise it with the installer first in writing. If that fails, the consumer code the firm belongs to has a complaints route, and MCS can investigate whether the installation met its standards.
Renting? The landlord commissions and owns the system, so these checks are for them. Our guide to renting and solar in Manchester covers how to raise it.