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In the past year alone energy bills have risen by a staggering 40 per cent, and there's little sign of them coming down. But is there another way to tackle the escalating prices? Watchdog has received a number of complaints about a particular energy company whose claims are landing them in hot water.
Since the report on 8 December we've had a big response from people wanting to know which claims you can trust, and which you need to take with a pinch of salt. So we put some of your questions to the Energy Saving Trust.
Original report from 8 December
Oil, electricity and gas are polluting and expensive. Wind, sea and sun are clean and free. So wouldn't it be great if you could tap in to nature to produce your energy at home?
Thousands already have with solar panels which use the power of the sun to heat up their water.
Salesmen making big promises for the environment
Solar panels can be great for the planet but there's one company that claims it will be great for your wallet too. Its salesmen make out that panels like these will preserve the ice caps and your cash, knocking at least 75 per cent off your hot water bills.
It is tempting. Especially when the company puts it another way - saying it could slash your total gas bill by 60 per cent.
It's called Solar Direct UK Limited. Its website says it has been in business for over 15 years, with thousands of satisfied customers.
Paying over the odds
Terry O'Leary bought Solar Direct UK Ltd's panels because he thought they made sense for the environment and for him. What he didn't know, is he'd paid way over the odds for the system - a whopping £7,500. A system on an average house normally costs between £3,000 and £5,000.
Alan Griffin says the company's salesman lied to his 85-year-old Dad when he sold him a solar-powered hot water system.
The system cost £6,500, but the salesman promised Jack Griffin and his wife it would cut so much off their gas bill that it would pay for itself in just five or six years. Their son feels they were duped.
He says: "I did a few calculations to see what the payback time would be and it was 60 years, if at all, ever."
So, Solar Direct uses promises that just aren't true, to sign you up to something that's not just expensive, it won't do what it claims. And that isn't a complete surprise.
Two years ago the parent company of Solar Direct UK Limited - Simplee Solar Limited was forced to pay out £40,000 after being prosecuted for exactly that. The man behind the case was Ivan Hancock from Dorset Trading Standards.
He says: "Back in 2006 they were prosecuted for offences under the trade descriptions act, they were making false claims in flyers and we challenged that, and they were found guilty after a case in the Crown Court in Bournemouth."
In October, a new law came in forcing companies to give all customers who sign a contract in their own homes a seven-day cooling off period. But that's a law Solar Direct seems happy to ignore.
In secret filming conducted by Watchdog, one Solar Direct salesman asked us to give up our cooling off period and under the new law he just can't do that.
Not complying with new legislation
Ivan Hancock says: "I'd like to hear from the company as to why it thinks it can exclude itself from complying with this new legislation. There are certain get outs, but in my view there would be a breach of the new regulations dealing with cancelation of contracts in consumer's homes."
When Watchdog contacted Solar Direct it told us that since its parent company Simplee Solar was convicted under the trade descriptions act it has: "...Made a number of changes to the way it sells its products. In particular, customers are given several opportunities to express satisfaction or dissatisfaction with their product."
It adds that it has "thousands of very satisfied customers who are achieving the sort of savings that are possible from our units."
Solar Direct insists it "remains committed to providing a quality product at a fair price" and that "the number of complaints we receive is minimal."
