The Feed In Tariff is a government backed scheme that guarantees good long term financial returns for people who choose to invest in a solar PV installation on their home or business.

How the Feed In Tariff works

•  FIT Payments. The Feed In Tariff guarantees a payment of 21p per kWh* for every unit of electricity generated by your solar PV system for 25 years after its installation, even if you're using some of that electricity yourself in the house.
•  Export Payments. On top of this you're guaranteed 3.2p per kWh for every kWh of electricity that is exported to the national grid for other people to use. For most systems the electricity companies simply estimate this figure as being 50% of the total generated
• Offset Electricity. PV generated electricity is also available to be used by you in your house as it's being generated, meaning that you don't need to buy this electricity from the electricity companies. This is known as offset electricity costs, and is worth around 13p per kWh that's used.
• Tax Free. Income from the Feed In Tariff is paid via your electricity bill, and unlike bank interest payments, does not count as taxable income. For higher rate tax payers this effectively means that an investment in PV can generate 40% more money in your pocket than a standard taxable investment with the same rates of return.
• Inflation Linked. Feed In Tariff and Export payments are index linked to inflation (RPI).

All Leeds Solar PV installations are eligible for the Feed In Tariff payments

Feed In Tariff FAQs

Is the Feed In Tariff only for home owners?

The Feed In Tariff is available for installations on any building, not just houses, as long as you are the owner of that building, or have the owner's written permission.

How do I get paid?

The Feed In Tariff and Export payments are made by your electricity company on your electricity bill, or directly into your bank account as a rebate if your payments are worth more than your electricity bill.

Do I need a Energy Perfocmance Certificate rating of D to get the full Feed in Tariff rate?

Yes, from 1st April 2012, all buildings to which a solar PV installation is fitted need to submit an EPC showing the building has achieved level D or higher with their FIT application in order to claim the higher rate of the Feed In Tariff. However the Solar PV installation counts towards your EPC rating and if necessary Leeds Solar can help you with other energy efficiency measures to help you get at least a band D rating. Please see our EPC FAQs for more inforation about EPCs.

Can DIY solar installation get the Feed In Tariff?

No. Only installations completed and certified with the Microgeneration Certification Scheme (MCS) by MCS certified companies such as Leeds Solar are eligible for FIT payments. If you're interested in getting more involved in the process though, we do offer a design your own system service to allow you to design your perfect system yourself, and we'll then just check the design for problems, and install it for you (coming soon). 

Can I get a Grant?

No. The Feed In Tariff scheme replaces previous grant funding schemes

*21p per kWh is the rate for under 4kWp systems for 4-10kWp systems the rate is 16.8p per kWh and for 10-50kWp systems it is 15.2p per kWh.