ECH Group Ltd  Avis 283

A very good experience, with a timely response to my request for information and then progressed to a quote within a week. The installation date was scheduled, and the kit arrived in good time beforehand - with the engineers arriving promptly on the day to complete the install. Just a return visit for the electrical elements to be finished before we could use the panels for our home and car. The DIO registration took months to complete however, and we have still not had a response from the local energy provided for the energy we are giving back to the grid - so my recommendation is to use as much as you can during the sunny times!

We found ECH from a recommendation and would not hesitate to pass on this recommendation. The installers were very good and polite. All working well and paperwork all received. Might need to work on communication skills but they are trustworthy

Very happy with the advice received when deciding on the system, and with the installation. Everything went smoothly, a very neat installation job, nice staff, and the system is up and running.
The Givenergy app is really good too.
Would recommend ECH and the products.

I made an enquiry to a website about installing home batteries to complement my solar panel array. They recommended that I approached ECH group to get this work done. A price and time scale was giiven quickly and I agreed to proceed. The necessary equipment arrived the day before installation was due but then I received a phone call informing me that the job would be delayed due to ilness. A few day later the installation was carried out. The tradesmen were courteous and competent, the job being fully completed within a day. The sytem is now working and I am extremely happy wiith the end result saving me lots of money. Thanks ECH Group. I am a very satisfied customer.

Despite the current delays from manufacturers and lack of supplies, ECF managed to complete the installation with minimal delays.
Dealing with the sales team was easy via email, but as the phones are off and it is easier to ask questions and have a bit of back and forth over the phone, I had to request and book in a timeslot. This wasn't a problem and the team had some helpful advice particular to my needs & requirements.

On the install day, the team started at 0730, which is early, but in this heat, I wouldn't want anyone working in the afternoon sun!

The roofers were polite, accepting of my son talking to them (incessantly) and very quick.

The electrician was amazing - the setup looks very professional and the cables are all tidy.

Overall, I'm very pleased with everything.

This was my second install from ECH, all completed on time and the system is working well. They were very tidy when working and the staff were friendly and polite. Each time they guided me through the app to monitor the system and took the time to walk me through everything. I would highly recommend ECH.

While things didn't go perfectly, I am pleased with the result. Life is full of surprises and in my case, ECH didn't do a site survey and found that they needed some scaffolding to access parts of my roof when they first turned up to install. Installation /scaffolding was rearranged and the install team were very good - neat install, rubbish taken away and system working well. Lessons learned: I should have ordered a bigger battery (mine is 5kwh and does not meet my overnight electricity use).

TRUST PILOT - you removed the below review. Can you please explain why, I have email evidence confirming all of the below. Why did you remove it, it is factually 100% correct. Please contact me to advise, or post.

Didnt turn up on install date - go elsewhere
I contacted ECH in Jan 2022 - the first thing I told them, I live in Chester, would you be interested (theyre based down south) . They confirmed they would. I discussed with Carl the sort of system I was after and he provided some great advice. On the 22nd March they confirmed they would install on the 16th May. Not having heard from them I emailed on the 11th May to confirm when they would arrive, no response. I followed up on the 13th May, no response. I called on the morning of the 16th May (the automated message tells you to contact your installer), so I emailed again at 9.22am on the 16th. At 4.22pm on the 16th I receive the response that due to staff shortages and issues with materials our install was "missed in terms that no one had contacted you". I mailed back on the 16th May asking for the new install timeframe, no response, mailed back for a final time on the 18th May, no response. My Octopus fixed rate ended on the 26th May. ECH let me down hugely. Apparently they are a firm that trades on great customer service, we have differing opinions of what that means. I hate posting negative reviews, but clearly you engage with these people at your peril. They wasted 4 months of my time and I've had to start again. There are plenty of other installers and I'd do yourself a favour and go elsewhere.

Edit: ECHs reply below is a 100% lie unfortunately (Trust Pilot insist on a quote to allow a review to stand), if anyone would like an email with my quote attached and follow up correspondence confirming the install date then drop me an email at simonlazarus2012 at gmail.com. Unfortunately I dont have any correspondence advising that they wouldnt install as they never provided any. They just didnt turn up.

ECH: this really doesnt look good for you. I have all your emails confirming you will be attending for a site survey, your quote and your confirmation that you'll be attending to install in May - as do you and Trustpilot.

I very rarely leave reviews but when my neighbour showed concern from reading the poor reviews after my husband and I recommended ECH to them, I felt I had to write one as some of these are very undeserving. My husband and I have recently had our install completed by them and we could not recommend this company enough so it makes me wonder truly if these 1 star reviews are because of ECH or the customer..

From start to finish, the company remained very professional even with a few slight issues (made by their supplier, not them) and we never had an issue with communication despite mostly being done via email which my husband and I had no problems with. The installers were also very friendly and very helpful. After our install, my husband received a telephone call from
David who was able to talk us through our system and give us a better understanding. It was made clear ECH are very knowledgeable about what they sell and install.

We also found the cost to be very reasonable. After doing some hunting around, ECH came out one of the best.

I really hope people are not put off by the 1 star reviews as it’s undeserving. A great team in a very busy industry.

Thank you ECH. We cannot wait to start seeing the benefits.

Frank and Jean Lewis

I am ready to purchase a large solar PV system with battery and other add ons. Initially got a quote, in fact sent multiple times. As they do not take phone calls all communications was by email. Agreed what I wanted and the owner of the company Carl suggested a site visit. He set up the day and time and to be sure I even emailed a second confirmation the day before as I had a feeling he would not turn up. Sure enough no response to the email and no visit. Sad as I was wanting to place my order with them. It seems up until end of 2021 they were getting good reviews but now mostly negative. I suspect they are unable to cope. How can one ever be sure the installation would happen and what happens if you have a problem. I personally cannot take that risk. They need to rethink their business model to regain trust.

ECH failed to fulfil my order twice and only communicated this by email on the day of installation and three working days before installation, respectively. The first time was because the panels were damaged and I was only notified - by email - when I queried where the installers were on the day of installation. A second date was set for two months later with Carl assuring me that they wouldn't have the same problem again.

The second time they emailed to say that the panels had not arrived and asked if I would be happy with a replacement. They emailed on Friday morning with installation the following Wednesday and then called at 12.00pm asking me to decide if I was agreeable to an alternative panel - with slightly lower power output, efficiency, worse degradation and a much lower warranty period, but at the same price - wanting a decision by 12.45pm as the chosen panel was not in stock.

We spent some time initially agreeing a panel with Carl, who recommended and sold us the one we chose, waited patiently, paid a deposit and endured poor communication - with ECH only communicating key messages by email and not picking up the telephone - only for them not to install the panels they had proposed on two occasions and state it was supplier issues without taking any accountability for the fact that the contract for works was with them and they are the ones that have failed to fulfil it. I can only imagine that after care or resolving any issues would be a poor, protracted and unsatisfactory experience also. I cannot recommend ECH based on this poor experience.

Leading up to the install we had loads of clear email comms with Phil who ensured we knew exactly what was happening. Really happy with install. We asked to speak to Carl and he called us at an agreed time to go through the detail before we made such a large purchase.
The guys who did the install were outstanding. Everything was easy and tidy. Even when a part was needed the fab electrician drove 2.5hrs back to Gosport and came the next day to complete it. Very impressive. So far all working really well. The price is excellent for what you receive.

Originally contacted ECH mid 2021 for a quote, revised quote in 2022 and agreed to the Contract Of Works in June 2022 and paid the requested 25% deposit.
Less than 24 hrs before work was scheduled they emailed to say there was a parts shortage so we have unilaterally cancelled your contract. No revised dates just cancelled in total.
Eventually they confirmed that the cost of parts had increased and they had misquoted for the installation.
They accepted they were in breach of contract .
The solar panels duly arrived as originally planned the following day.
I have received back my deposit, still have the solar panels on my drive and have wasted approx six months planning . Plus now subject to a three month wait for another supplier.
In summary l feel badly let down by ECH who have been cavalier with a total lack of basic customer care.

Having carried out lots of research and looked at many companies, we settled on ECH Group for the installation of our solar panels and battery. Price was very competitive and reviews convinced us this was the right company for us. Process from quote to installation was issue-free, professional and efficient. We needed a couple of small fixes (new MCB and dongle) which were completed in four weeks (we withheld final payment until system was complete). We are extremely happy with our system and, given the recent blisteringly hot weather, we are pretty much self-sufficient electrically speaking! Reason for four stars is that we waited 25 days for final paperwork which we were promised in 10 days. Quoting, surveys, installation all very efficient but admin needs to catch-up!

Really pleased with solar panels, ECH did a great job. Our house is 1,700sqft we have a 13kw air source heat pump and now 14 solar panels with a c10kwh battery, nothing special insulation wise, just cavity, now mostly off grid, infarct we export c. 10kwh a day. For anyone with climate awareness, a south facing roof and the financial means for solar panels I recommend! financially fab and feel virtuous for decarbonising the grid, nothing better. Took two days for install and ECH were a great choice of partner!

Great installation quick times and a very professional install in my opinion. If there’s one thing I could suggest to ECH is once booking is made maybe a phone call to actually speak to somebody rather than emails. I understand that times are hard for batteries and solar and there only a limited time in the day, but not once did I speak verbally with Carl if was all done in email. Apart from this I highly recommend ECH.

System has broken 3 times since installation. It's currently been in a non working state for 3 weeks because ECH have failed to send someone to fix it.

ECH installed a small array on my roof, and I can't recommend them highly enough. The system works very well, and importantly they've also been super responsive with any follow up problems: this weekend an unrelated issue caused a switch to trip, and their online support was very quick and got the problem fixed first time. I think they are excellent.

I have found ECH to be a very responsive, efficient and effective company. An issue with the battery, one month after my solar panels were installed, was dealt with most efficiently. I had a call to explain the problem (ECH were not at fault) and how it had been resolved. I have found all the staff to be approachable, polite and certainly skilled at their jobs.

July 2022 update: Friendly pre-sales and installation but they have a documented (see other reviews) pattern of abdicating responsibility for supporting faulty installations.
The reviews here tell a clear story: lots of five star ratings when things work (as mine would have been), but lots of one star ratings when there are problems. There's also an alarming number of references to legal action in both directions (that alone should be a red flag) and some very spiky responses to reviews.

They jumped on my negative review a month ago within two hours of my posting it and asked Trustpilot to remove it. I jumped through various hoops to verify my account and Trustpilot accepted my evidence and reinstated the review.

Despite acting quickly and somewhat cynically to attempt to remove the review, the (originally very responsive) management team have continued to ignore all attempts to contact them for the last six months, hiding behind unresponsive and ultimately powerless customer support.

As for my customer experience: it's eleven months since installation. The GivEnergy batteries have not worked properly since then (seven weeks in total offline, and the rest of the time running erratically at only 80% capacity due to an acknowledged fault). ECH are ignoring (not refusing, but blatantly ignoring) my requests for a refund. I've been incredibly patient over the last year but this is a fault which has been present since installation and they've comprehensively failed to address it.

As stated above, the management and complaints department don't reply to my emails at all and tech support, when they eventually reply (it can take weeks of chasing), tell me that they're waiting on the manufacturer and can't do anything else. That's not how consumer rights work and they should know that.

Save yourself the trouble -- pick a different installer.

Previous (June) review was as follows:

My solar installation was completed in August last year and from the start I've been have problems with the GivEnergy battery system. For a month it didn't work at all and even after that it's had calibration and capacity problems. ECH take weeks of chasing to reply to my messages and the eventual responses are holding responses telling me they'll contact the manufacturer.

They don't answer the phone (a voice recording says they're too busy), they don't respond to the support tickets, they don't respond to emails to individual addresses and even an email to the formal complaints address received no reply beyond nudging the support staff to update the ticket apologising for the delay.

There's a lot more to say here but in short, the various negative reviews all ring true: they seem a nice bunch but are hopeless at support if things go wrong after the installation.