Widespread defects found in Sydney's solar panels

The review of 658 homes in Sydney's north-west found 18.5% solar panel units had major defects and 63.5% had minor defects, said NSW Premier Barry O'Farrell. The major defects related primarily to incorrect installation of some components or incorrect wiring while the minor defects generally related to incorrect marking and signage.

Of the 120,000 homes in NSW with solar installations, only two had reported minor fires in their fuse boxes, O'Farrell stressed, suggesting householders to not turn off their solar panel systems but to call a qualified expert if they were concerned that their installation may be defective. As a first step, those with concerns should contact the company which sold them their solar panel system to confirm that the installer was qualified and that the system has a Certificate of Compliance. Where the company cannot confirm that the system is safe, owners should ask them to inspect it again. Those who are still not satisfied with the response or who want an independent inspection of their system should go to the Clean Energy Council website where customers can access a list of accredited solar-trained electricians who can check systems for a fee. Where there is a problem with a system the installer is required to fix the defects as soon as possible at no charge, noted O'Farrell. NSW Fair Trading can also take action against substandard installations of solar panels where complaints are lodged.

Electricity distributors are also now writing to customers with detailed advice on what to do and are standardising their inspection procedures to check that solar PV systems are properly connected to the electricity network. "Where major defects were found during this audit, the systems were shut down by Fair Trading Inspectors and the owners informed. Fair Trading is also contacting the installers responsible for the defective work and directing them to rectify the problems."