A home battery quote is ready to sign only when you can see what is being installed, what the recommendation is based on, which parts are still conditional and who is responsible for each next step. This solar battery installer quote checklist for UK homeowners is designed to help you check those points before you commit.
Some details can reasonably remain subject to a survey, Distribution Network Operator (DNO) decision or another site-specific check. That is not automatically a problem. What matters is whether the quote says what is unresolved, what could change, who will resolve it and how any change in design, price or responsibility will be handled.
Before you sign: what a good battery quote should make clear
In short
Before you sign a home battery quote, make sure it tells you what is being installed, why that size has been recommended, what remains subject to survey or DNO approval, where the battery will go, which costs are excluded, what each warranty covers, what software access you get, what documents you will receive and who handles faults afterwards. If an important promise is still vague or only verbal, ask for it in writing before you commit.
A useful quote does more than list a battery and a total price. It should let you separate confirmed facts from assumptions, understand which tasks sit with the installer or another party, and see what evidence you will receive before installation and at handover.
If the installation is being delivered through MCS, the scheme adds specific pre-sale and installer requirements. For electrical energy storage systems, MCS 032:2025 sets out written pre-contract information covering matters such as usable storage capacity, maximum power, proposed location and whether the system is AC- or DC-coupled. That is an MCS-scheme requirement; it should not be presented as a blanket statutory checklist for every non-MCS battery quote.
Pre-signing checklist
1. Has your home and electrical setup actually been assessed?
Start by asking which site-specific facts the quote is already based on. A quotation produced before every detail has been checked can still be useful, but it should not quietly present assumptions as settled design decisions.
What should already be known
Ask what the installer has checked about the existing consumer unit, any solar PV and inverter already at the property, the proposed battery position, access for the work and the likely cable route. The point is not to insist that every quote must follow one survey format. It is to know which design inputs are confirmed rather than assumed.
If existing generation is involved, make sure the installer has identified it rather than sizing and quoting the battery as though it were being added to an empty electrical system.
What can reasonably remain subject to survey
A quote can say that a cable route, mounting detail, consumer-unit alteration or other site condition is subject to survey. Before signing, ask what happens if the survey changes that assumption: could the system design change, could there be an extra charge, and what choices would you have before additional work is authorised?
The phrase “subject to survey” is most useful when it has a boundary. A vague condition that can change almost any part of the project gives you much less certainty than a clearly identified outstanding check.
2. Can the installer explain the battery size and power?
Do not accept one headline number as the whole sizing explanation. Battery capacity and power answer different questions, so the quote should make both clear and explain why they fit the household objective.
Check usable capacity and power separately
Usable capacity in kWh tells you how much stored energy is available for use under the stated product and system conditions. Power in kW tells you how quickly the system can charge or discharge under the relevant conditions. A larger kWh figure does not automatically mean a higher kW output.
For an MCS installation, the pre-sale information standard specifically treats usable storage capacity and maximum power as separate items. Use that separation as a practical comparison habit even when you are reading quotes from different installers.
Ask what household data the recommendation is based on
Ask which data led to the recommendation: annual electricity use, time-of-day demand, existing solar generation or export, tariff objective, larger household loads and any planned changes the installer has actually considered. A generic “this size suits most homes” is less useful than a recommendation tied to your own data and intended use.
This page does not set a generic 5 kWh, 10 kWh or other “right size” for a UK home. The purpose of the quote check is to make the installer’s reasoning visible so you can compare like with like.
3. Who is handling the DNO process?
The installer should identify the applicable grid-connection route from the complete proposed arrangement, not from battery kWh alone. In England, Scotland and Wales, GOV.UK guidance for device owners and installation contractors places the technical process with the installer while also telling the owner to make sure the required DNO notification has been received or, where prior authorisation is required, that it has been granted before the relevant work proceeds.
Ask for the proposed connection route and current status
In Great Britain, the current ENA G98 Issue 2 catalogue entry covers qualifying Fully Type Tested micro-generation, including electricity storage, within an aggregate limit of up to and including 16 A per phase. The current ENA G99 Issue 2 catalogue entry covers generating arrangements outside G98 scope or not compliant with G98 requirements. The practical point for a quote is that existing generation, inverter arrangement, type-test status and aggregate capacity can all matter; a battery’s stored-energy capacity in kWh does not decide the route by itself.
If you need the grid-connection detail, read our guide to G98 and G99 for home battery storage.
The installer can handle the paperwork, but the homeowner should still verify the outcome
Ask the quote or contract to name who will submit the DNO information, whether the project is waiting for any prior authorisation, and how you will be told when the relevant notification or approval step is complete. “We handle DNO” is useful only if you also know the current status and what, if anything, could change the design or timing.
Great Britain and Northern Ireland are not the same process
Northern Ireland uses separate G98/NI and G99/NI documents. NIE Networks’ Distribution Code page publishes the Northern Ireland connection documents, so Great Britain guidance should not be applied unchanged to a Northern Ireland installation.
4. Is the battery location and electrical scope agreed?
A battery quote is easier to compare when it identifies where the equipment is intended to go and what electrical work is included to make that location workable. Avoid treating a generic room label such as “garage” or “outside” as enough on its own.
Get the location, cable route and likely electrical work in writing
Ask for the proposed position, the expected cable route, access requirements and any known consumer-unit or other electrical work to be stated in the quote or survey record. The installer should assess the location against the actual equipment requirements and the property, rather than relying on a universal rule that every battery belongs in one type of space.
If the exact location is still conditional, ask what criteria will decide it and whether a change could affect cable length, protection, labour or the final price.
Treat backup as a separate design question
Do not read “battery storage” as an automatic promise of whole-home backup during a power cut. If backup matters to you, ask exactly which circuits or loads are intended to operate, what additional equipment or wiring is included, and what operating limits or conditions apply. The answer belongs in the system design and quote, not in an assumption.
5. Are the quote assumptions and exclusions visible?
The total price is only comparable when the scope behind it is visible. Ask what is included, what is excluded and which items could still generate a variation after survey, DNO feedback or another agreed check.
Check the full installed scope
Depending on the project, useful lines to clarify can include the battery and associated equipment being supplied, mounting, cable runs, consumer-unit work, metering or monitoring equipment, DNO-related work, commissioning, software setup, handover and any separate backup work. These are comparison questions, not a claim that every home needs the same set of items.
Important verbal promises are worth confirming in writing. Under sections 49 and 50 of the Consumer Rights Act 2015, a trader supplying a service must perform it with reasonable care and skill, and information about the service that a consumer relies on can become part of the contract. This is a reason to make material promises explicit; it is not legal advice on whether a particular trader has breached the Act.
Audit any savings or payback assumptions
If a quote includes a savings or payback estimate, ask for the assumptions behind it rather than treating the headline result as a promise. Useful inputs can include household consumption, solar surplus, import and export values, charging strategy, usable battery energy, power limits, losses and the installed cost actually being quoted.
6. Which warranty covers the product — and which covers the installation?
“Warranty” can hide several different responsibilities. Read the actual product warranty separately from the installer’s responsibilities for design and workmanship, then ask how diagnosis, labour and replacement work will be handled if something goes wrong.
Separate product warranty from design and workmanship
Do not assume a product warranty automatically covers the installer’s workmanship, and do not assume an installation guarantee automatically covers every product failure. Ask for the applicable documents and the contracting parties to be named clearly.
For an MCS installation, the current MCS Installer Operating Requirements require a written guarantee for the system design and the workmanship of the installation. They also place responsibility on the certified installer for the aspects of the installation defined by its customer contract and require arrangements for subcontracted work. Those scheme duties do not justify inventing a universal guarantee length for every installer or every job.
Ask who pays for diagnosis, labour and replacement work
Before signing, ask how a fault will be diagnosed and who is responsible for any call-out, travel, labour, removal, reinstallation and transport that might be needed to complete a product-warranty claim. The answer depends on the actual contract, warranty and sales route, so it should not be assumed from the warranty headline alone.
Also ask what happens if the installer uses a subcontractor. For an MCS job, the certified installer’s scheme responsibilities are tied to the scope it has contracted with the customer, including how it manages subcontracted work. For a non-MCS job, rely on the actual contract and applicable consumer rights rather than assuming the same scheme rules apply.
7. What software access and control are you actually buying?
Treat software as part of the quoted experience, not as an unspoken extra. Ask what you will be able to monitor, which settings you can change yourself, whether normal operation depends on a cloud service or subscription, and whether the installer retains remote access after commissioning.
If an app, portal, API, local-control option or owner-admin account matters to you, ask whether that specific feature is included for the exact system being quoted. None of those features should be treated as a universal entitlement simply because another battery brand or installer offers it.
It is also reasonable to ask what happens if the software service, subscription model or remote-support arrangement changes later. The useful answer is the one the supplier is prepared to put in writing for your system.
8. What should you receive at handover?
Ask before signing what the handover pack will contain rather than discovering the answer after commissioning. The promised pack should match the scheme, equipment and work being delivered, so avoid relying on a generic certificate list copied from another type of installation.
Useful points to confirm in writing include the operating information you will receive, warranty documents, commissioning or system records promised by the installer, DNO correspondence where relevant, and the contact route for support. If the job is being delivered through MCS, the Installer Operating Requirements call for an effective handover using the relevant technology-specific checklist.
Where an MCS Certificate applies, the current MCS scheme requirements say it should be raised and provided no later than 30 calendar days after commissioning.
9. Who owns aftercare, fault diagnosis and RMA?
Before you sign, identify the first contact if the battery stops working or the installation develops a problem. Then ask who diagnoses the fault, who decides whether it is a product or installation issue, who contacts the manufacturer where needed, who manages any return merchandise authorisation (RMA) process, and which labour or logistics costs are covered under the applicable terms.
The product manufacturer, the seller, the contracting installer and any subcontractor may have different roles. Avoid a quote that compresses all of them into one vague promise such as “covered by warranty” without explaining the claim route.
For an MCS-certified installation, start an installation complaint with the installer. Under the current MCS Complaints Policy, MCS may be able to assist with eligible unresolved complaints within its scope, including matters such as design, workmanship, installation, commissioning or handover. That does not mean MCS takes over every product-warranty claim or guarantees compensation.
Ask one more continuity question: if the installer stops trading, which warranties or protection arrangements would still be available, and what evidence would you need to use them? The answer should come from the actual documents for your contract rather than an assumed industry rule.
Home battery quote responsibility matrix
Use this matrix to turn a conversation into an auditable quote. “Installer role” means the normal operational role to ask about; the final contractual responsibility still depends on the actual contract, scheme and third parties involved.
Should you sign, ask for clarification or get another quote?
You do not need every minor detail to be final before you can make a decision. You do need enough written information to understand the system being proposed, the conditions still outstanding and who carries each responsibility.
Quick decision rule
- Ready to sign: the specification, scope, responsibilities and important assumptions are clear, and any remaining conditions have a written process for resolving them.
- Clarify first: the quote may be workable, but a material point such as DNO status, location, backup scope, warranty route or possible extra cost is still vague or only verbal.
- Compare another quote: core design assumptions or responsibility remain unclear after you have asked, or the installer will not put material commitments in writing.
One unresolved minor detail does not automatically make an installer unsafe or unsuitable. The reason to compare another quote is lack of usable clarity on a decision that could materially change the system, price or responsibility.
Compare home battery storage options after you’ve checked the quote assumptions
Once the installation needs and responsibilities are clear, compare storage options against that confirmed scope. Product selection does not replace compatibility, DNO or local installation checks for the actual property.
Compare Sunpura home battery storage options once you know what your installation needs.