Property owners have been warned to obtain independent assessments of solar potential following press reports of rogue traders and mis-selling.
The consumer watchdog Which? invited certified companies to quote for a domestic solar panel installation and found three quarters overestimated how much energy the panels would produce while most underestimated the time it would take for the installation costs to be recouped.

Bluesky, which specialises in capturing and creating environmental data including solar mapping, advises individuals or organisations thinking about solar energy to obtain an independent assessment of their property's suitability and potential before obtaining quotes for installation.

'Unfortunately when it comes to solar energy potential not all roofs are equal,' commented Rachel Tidmarsh, managing director of Bluesky. 'If a property owner is serious about solar energy we recommend that they undertake a thorough investigation of their own before accepting potentially exaggerated claims.'

Bluesky offers property level maps of solar energy potential and have recently announced a nationwide mapping project working with leading energy companies and solar panel companies as well as commercial property owners, housing associations and government organisations. The company also recently launched an on-demand service providing detailed solar suitability reports, including interactive 3D models, aerial images and easy to interpret colour coded models, for individual commercial, industrial, public sector and domestic properties.