Plug-in solar PV units should only enter the mass market when the necessary safety frameworks are in place, electrical industry bodies have warned.
A joint statement was issued by the Electrical Contractors’ Association (ECA), Electrical Safety First (ESF), the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET), the National Inspection Council for Electrical Installation Contracting (NICEIC) and Scottish construction trade association SELECT. It is in reaction to the government’s announcement earlier this year about a raft of new energy and cost-of-living measures to “double down, not back down, on our mission for clean energy”, one of which is easy access to plug-in solar panels.
Popular in other European countries such as Germany, these low-cost portable panels can be placed on balconies or terraces and plugged into a mains socket to generate electricity for the home’s electrical system. In March, the government said it was working with retailers including Lidl and Amazon, alongside manufacturers...