Solar Freaks

We recently ordered a 3kw solar system from True Value Solar.

It took them 4 months to install it. we were give 4 installation dates, the first 3 times the installers didn't even turn up or call!!!

4 months had past and we finally had our system installed. In less than 2 days after the guy installed it, the solar inverter fell off the wall resulting in live wires dangling outside my eight year olds bedroom window!

We tried to call their customer service (what customer service?) only to wait on the line for 15 minutes before getting hung up on. We have tried leaving messages on their answering machine, only to get 'mailbox is full!'.

After two days of trying to get in contact the company my husband had to take a day off work to go down and speak to one of the manager Suren Chandrajit! It then took another two days for a VERY RUDE person come out to fix it.

After this ordeal we realized we dealed with the wrong company so my husband and I started looking into True Value Solar to see who exactly they. The real company behind it is called 'The National Solar Group'.

Astonishingly the mob that run this place have been trading under several different names and ABN's in a space of less than 2 years!

True Value Solar (VIC) Pty Ltd – (ABN 57135821626) – 31st of March 2009

True Value Solar (SA) Pty Ltd – (ABN 11143232482) – 20th of April 2010

National Solar Group – (ABN 31143993248) – 1st of June 2010

State Solar Services – (ABN 85563549240) – 1st July 2010

State Solar Services Pty Ltd – (ABN 57135821626) – 22nd of December 2010

Obviously, the older names got a bad reputation and I can understand why. I feel we have been victim of a rebate cash-grab and can understand why its so easy for a Proprietry Limited to offer a "10 year warranty!".

At the end of the day this has been a lesson learnt for us that you really do get what you pay for!

Has anyone else had any experience with a solar company like this? If so, what happened?

I must agree , Totally rude people once you have payed , never deliver on what they promise and constantly dragging there feet in following up customers concerns.Another Home insulation grab for cash from Shapeshifting retailers. Go with a reputable energy supplier as they will be around in time to come . BOO to BOO valPOO SOLAR

We have got our solar panel installed with True Value Solar in South Australia 3 months ago and has paid it in full ($5000). I then asked them what form do I need to fill to get the export/import meter, they said the girl named Elizabeth will handle all the forms and registrations after installation. Elizabeth sent me the Form A and I sent back to her the next day. Since then, Elizabeth has done nothing to register us with our electricity company. I tried to contact her numerous times but she was too busy to pick up the phone and the girl in the office Jenny told me that only Elizabeth can help me. When I finally spoke to her 2 weeks ago, she said yeah yeah.. your registration will be completed by the end of the week and I rang my electricity company to day only to find out that Elizabeth still hasn’t sent the request to them yet.

I was so mad today and rang her but still couldn’t get to her, I asked Jenny who is their manager, she said Kylie, I asked for Kylie’s phone number but she wouldn’t give it to me. She said I have to wait for Elizabeth to get back to me but she never called me back in the past. The staff just wouldn't pass you on to their manager and wouldn’t give you their manager number.

I rang True Value Solar customer care number twice to discuss about this issue and all they could do was pass the message to the Adelaide office. They are pretty useless. I am so disappointed with the Adelaide manager Kylie and True Solar Energy with their unprofessional manner and that make me realise that once they have got your money, you are no longer their priority. They would just ignore you and go on looking for the new customers.

My advice to you is NEVER NEVER go with True Value Solar and if you already have, then NEVER pay them in full until they have sent all your authorisation forms to your electricity company and have registered your installation. Otherwise, you will be a very unhappy customer just like me.

Any of yous from Perth WA?

Thought I'd add my thoughts on True Value Solar to this forum. I spent the best part of a week ringing around and sorting the wheat from the chaff and trying to make my way through the solar power maze. True Value were reasonably helpful and gave me a great price on a 4kW system of just under $11K- go ahead and proceed I said. Email comes through and the details are nothing like those discussed (no explanation), back on the phone as it must have been a genuine mistake (?!). This went back and forth a dozen times and I finally ended up signing a contract with crossed out numbers and handwritten bits added in (should have heard the alarm bells then). The confirmation comes through, wrong again, price is now $13,500 for a 4.18kW but the confirmation says only 3.8kW. So to cut it short I have pulled the pin on these bozos and am going with a reputable company that talks straight and can actually deliver what they say. These TVS guys give you a great price to start with then start to haggle the price up, wrong price list, incorrect number of panels, wrong inverter. I am just grateful I got out before I put my deposit down, although am very dirty that they wasted 2 weeks of my time when I was trying to get in before the govt rebate changes. My advice is to stay well clear of these salesman that know nothing of solar panels. If you do decide to persist with the BS, then check over your paperwork very carefully, and don't believe the clowns on the phone, they are clearly under instruction to sell hard, the finer details such as price and specifications are irrelevant. Save your time and go elsewhere.

Well i just phoned for a quote and received an email with a contract. I have not paid a deposit, but they want $1000 in 48 hours.. I am freaking because all of the bad reputation that has been said about this company.. They told me if I do not pay the deposit the company - True Value Solar would take me to court as I have entered into a binding contract.. Not sure what to do..

Well i just phoned for a quote and received an email with a contract. I have not paid a deposit, but they want $1000 in 48 hours.. I am freaking because all of the bad reputation that has been said about this company.. They told me if I do not pay the deposit the company - True Value Solar would take me to court as I have entered into a binding contract.. Not sure what to do..

Not sure what to do??? - how can you consider doing business with a company that operates like this!

Hey kascol01, I'd be interested in hearing how you fare, keep us updated. Good luck to you, I hope that they don't mess you around too much, although judging by some of the comments I've read, I'd be keeping everything crossed. Interesting that they need legal muscle to retain customers, generally speaking reputable companies don't need this- maybe the word is getting out.

whoaa... reading through all the experiences people are having in here I am amazed... When i started to get interested to put in Solar panel in my house i did some researching and we were given quote by True Value as well , so glad now that we didnt choose that company. My neighbour got their system installed by Renewablelogic and i saw the process, looking so neat so we finally decide to go with this company, i got Germany product installed by them and the whole process was smooth. after the installation finish a lady from renewablelogic rang me again just to follow up with how everything is going, whether i am happy with the whole process or if i have any problem what so ever. So i guess we are quiet lucky that we didnt end up with True Value solar

similar story
ordered my system in march here we are in july and on my 4th install date and nothing to show for it except 3 no shows and always lame excuses ,today's was the installer came around but it was raining well that simply didn't happen as it hasn't rained all day and i was up at 6.30am now i have used 3 sick days up and will now need a forth
every body be warned stay clear of this mob.
who only knows when i will get my system and if it will even work properly if it installed

does ant one know if their is a regulatory body for solar ?

Sounds like TVS haven't changed their style in any way.
For the record, I ended up going with a local Adelaide company called Sunergy. Very knowledgable and straight talking owner (no sales push), system was priced very comparably, and the panels were installed within 2 weeks, inverter is coming tomorrow as there have been supply issues. My ETSA meter changeover date has already been confirmed and so far this company has been nothing but extremely professional. I'm so glad I didn't go through with True Value. Not sure about any regulatory body for solar but there is an acceditation body (Clean Energy Council) that you could make enquiries with.

Spoke to clean energy council
say they cant do anything until its installed so their no real help either

Sorry to hear that gleahy4. If you're from Adelaide and are an RAA member, they used to have a free legal advice service- maybe RACV, RACQ etc have a similar service they offer to members. They won't go to bat in for you but at least they may be able to point you in the right direction. Otherwise, maybe Hirdy can you help you out as he's flogging TVS on tele these days- another reason to dislike Essendon FC.

Anyone reading these comments and considering going with True Value Solar has got to have rocks in their head. Yeah, I'm p'd off with them coz they basically cost me $1500 by shafting me around for 2 weeks but I'm glad I didn't go through with them now. I would highly recommend Sunergy in Adelaide to anyone that is undecided who to go with. I used them and the timelines were as follows. Spoke to guy, got quote and signed a contract within a couple of days (admittedly he had been on site a few months previously before I got serious). Got an email a week after that to give me a meter changover date (around 7 weeks). Panels were installed 3 weeks after that, and inverter one week later. Installers were great, no dramas and reliable service- turned up when they said they would both times, and now I'm happily generating electricity as of yesterday.

heard from tvs today
assured me it will happen tomorrow
looking for the bright star tonight

I committed to buy a solar system from True Value Solar about a month ago.

As usual I did more research after the fact and became quite nervous about the deal - could True Value Solar live up to their commitment to be True and deliver a solar system that would work for more than a month?

A number of phone calls and emails to the salesman and to the Adelaide branch did nothing to reassure me. I wasn't clear on the process nor the timing of the installation and no-one from True Value provided any real support. What is run-of-the-mill to someone who has sold hundreds of solar systems is not so to someone who will only buy one system.

The salesman then went on holidays and I ended up talking to the Sales Manager, Brett Fraser. He quite openly admitted that TVS has had bad press and had performed badly in some instances, particularly in South Australia. He said they had sacked the installation company used in SA about five weeks ago. He offered to refund my deposit with no obligation on my part or to refund the deposit with the entire contract sum to be paid on the system being satisfactorily installed.

After a few days of thought I asked that my deposit be refunded and the contract cancelled. Brett Fraser said that he would have his Accounts Dept sort it out. I asked for a confirmatory email and received same. Today my refund landed in my account with no further prompting from myself.

From the tenor of the posts on this forum, most would say "a lucky escape". I would say "they've got problems to sort out but in the end I was treated fairly".

well
true value installers turned up on friday and all went smoothly
great guys worked like true professionals and all done in 3 hours
lets see how long it takes now for agl to do their bit

Well,
I paid my 1000 dollars with TVS 9 weeks ago, they originally quoted me 8 weeks for installation, so I ring them yesterday to see how close it is to happening. They then tell me I am in a country location under their criteria (even though Im 40 min from CBD) and country locations carry a 10 - 14 week installation time, despite being quoted 8 wks originally. They said I should receive a call from office girls in around 2 weeks to organise install (sounds plausible .... )

My question to previous customers is, can I hold back the balance of payment until the job is complete, or do they force you to pay by not installing ??

I had the solar panels installed by True Value Solar. The salesman told me that I would get around $200 to $250 rebate off my power bill every quarter. What a load of crap! Luck if I get $20 per quarter.
After complaining by phone, I was told that someone would call me back in 3 days. Well that didnt happen. I emailed my complaint and was told that someone would come out and repair it on a set date. Well of course that didnt happen. Im still waiting. and waiting and waiting and waiting.

they will not do the install if its not paid for I had three no shows after the first 1 I asked for them to refund my money and i would pay when the installer arrived on site but no go money up front or no booking

Hmmm where do i start. Last year back in July i ordered out solar panels through true value, filled out the forms, paid my $1000 deposit and heard nothing. My father-in-law also order some a couple of months later and told them about mine and that sort of got the ball rolling. Waiting waiting waiting father-in-law staring getting shitty and rang the company, which in turn told him that i hadnt filled out all the paper work, (i was doing interest free).

So filled the paper work out sent it back, then heard nothing. rang the company and the guy we were going through had left and low and behold no record of any of our transaction. lots of searching blah blah blah system installed in December whilst i was in Melbourne husband couldnt sign paper work as his name wasnt on the contract, so they took the contract and was going to send back for me to sign, nothing.

I have an old meter which was going backwards anyway, so on my electricity bill it was down to under $300, which is good for us. February came along and still hadnt heard anything or paid anything, so i was a little worried someone would come knocking on my door demanding money lol, so I rang them. Cant find me on the system, I thought thats ok they wont get there money.

Eventually they found me on the old system and basically i told them i wasnt paying till i get everything that was in the contract such as the wireless monitor, plus the export/import meter that apparently only they can set up.
Others have spoken about this Elizabeth and Kylie in Adelaide, well Kylie has left the company and Elizabeth is as useless as a tit on a bull. The government is going to cut out the feed in thingo in October and Im worried I wont have my meter by then.
Well they wont be getting there money, Once Debit has contacted me and asked if they can pay them now and I said no until I received everything in my contract.

My advise dont go with them, this has been going for over a year now!!