Solar Panels and Home Insurance: The UK Guide
Tell your insurer when you fit solar panels: they change your buildings sum insured and insurers expect to know. For most households, professionally installed panels make little or no difference to the premium, and once declared they are covered as part of the building against storm, fire and theft like your roof itself.
In This Guide
Do you have to tell your insurer?
Yes, and it is a phone call, not an ordeal. Solar panels bolted to your roof become part of the building, which affects your buildings insurance in two ways: the rebuild cost your sum insured is based on goes up by the value of the system, and insurers expect to be told about home improvements of this scale. Staying quiet risks a headache at claim time, when an undeclared change is exactly the sort of thing that complicates settlement.
Tell them when the installation is booked or complete, give them the installed value and the installer's details, and keep the confirmation with your solar paperwork. If you fitted panels years ago and never mentioned it, mention it at renewal; declaring late is better than never.
Will the premium go up?
For most households, not meaningfully. A professionally installed, certified system on a house like the one pictured is routine to insurers now; well over a million UK homes have panels. What insurers react badly to is risk they cannot assess, which is why the same three documents keep earning their keep:
- MCS certificateProof the system was installed to the recognised standard by a certified firm.
- Electrical installation certificateProof the electrical work was done and signed off properly.
- Installer details and warrantyProof there is a responsible party behind the workmanship.
DIY installations and uncertified work are a different conversation with an insurer, which is one more entry on the long list of reasons professional installation pays.
What is covered, and against what
| Event | Typical position under buildings insurance |
|---|---|
| Storm and wind damage | Covered as part of the building, subject to the policy's storm terms |
| Fire | Covered as part of the building |
| Theft of panels | Generally covered; rare in practice for roof-mounted domestic systems |
| Impact damage, falling branches | Generally covered under standard perils |
| Faults, breakdown, underperformance | Not insurance: this is warranty territory, covered below |
| Gradual wear, degradation | Not covered; insurance is for sudden events, not ageing |
Policies differ, so the honest instruction is the boring one: check your own policy's wording on renewable equipment, and ask the direct question when you declare the system. Ask about accidental damage cover too, which some policies include and some sell as an extra.
How claims actually work
Say a winter storm lifts panels or a branch cracks one. The claim runs like any buildings claim: document the damage with photos from the ground, make the system safe, and get a professional assessment of the damage and repair cost for the insurer. Never climb up yourself, and be wary of anyone door-knocking after storms offering instant roof inspections; genuine assessments come through your insurer or an installer you chose. We produce damage reports and repair quotes for insurance claims on request, including for systems we did not fit, and our guide to solar panel problems covers how damage shows up in the first place.
Insurance vs warranties: who pays for what
The two systems of protection divide the world neatly, and knowing which door to knock on saves weeks:
- Insurance pays for eventsStorms, fire, impact, theft: sudden external things that happen to the system.
- Warranties pay for failuresA panel losing output, an inverter dying, a fault in the workmanship: things going wrong within the system. That is the manufacturer's warranty or the installer's guarantee, detailed in our warranty guide.
- Insurance-backed guarantees bridge the gapOur workmanship guarantee is backed by QANW, so the cover survives even if the installer does not, the failure mode covered in our installer-gone-bust guide.
Batteries and your policy
Declare a home battery the same way you declare the panels, whether fitted together or retrofitted later. Insurers are increasingly familiar with home storage, and a professionally installed battery in a sensible location, following current installation guidance on placement, is routine to cover as part of the building or contents depending on the policy's approach. Mention the location when you declare it. The safety and placement detail lives in our retrofit and battery guides, and if you are adding storage, the declaration is one line on the same call: our battery retrofit guide has the rest of the checklist.
Need paperwork your insurer will accept?
MCS certification, electrical certificates, damage assessments and repair quotes, for our installs and for systems we did not fit. Call 0115 773 7575, 8am to 8pm, 7 days.
Get in touchFrequently asked questions
Do I need to tell my home insurance about solar panels?
Yes. Panels change your building's rebuild value and insurers expect to be told about improvements of this scale. Declaring is usually a short call with the installed value and installer details, and it prevents the far worse conversation where an undeclared system complicates a claim.
Do solar panels increase home insurance premiums?
Usually little or nothing for a professionally installed, MCS certified system, which insurers now treat as routine. What can affect terms is uncertified or DIY work, because the insurer cannot assess the risk. Keep the certificates with your policy documents and quote them when you declare.
Are solar panels covered against storm damage?
Once declared, panels are generally covered as part of the building under your policy's storm provisions, the same as the roof they sit on. Policies differ in wording and excesses, so check yours specifically. After any storm damage, document from the ground and get a professional assessment for the claim.
Is an inverter failure an insurance claim?
No, that is warranty territory. Insurance responds to sudden external events like storms and fire; component failures and underperformance sit with the manufacturer's warranty or the installer's workmanship guarantee. Knowing the split saves time: breakdown goes to the installer, damage goes to the insurer.
Do I need separate solar panel insurance?
Generally no. Declared panels sit within your buildings insurance rather than needing a standalone policy, and the fault side is handled by warranties. Where standalone products exist they mostly duplicate cover you already hold. Read your policy before paying for anything extra.
Does a home battery affect my insurance?
Declare it like the panels, with its location. Professionally installed batteries in sensible positions are increasingly routine for insurers. What matters is the same pattern as panels: certified installation, proper placement under current guidance, and the paperwork to show both when you make the call.
Related reading
- Solar panel warranties explained
- Common solar panel problems and fixes
- Selling a house with solar panels
- What to do when your installer goes bust
- Adding a battery to an existing solar system
Installed to the standard insurers expect
We are an MCS certified installer (NIC200223) based in Bulwell, Nottingham, with a 5-year workmanship guarantee backed by QANW on every install. Call 0115 773 7575, 8am to 8pm, 7 days.
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