Electrics and gas

There is a solar inverter in the loft. Did the survey test that the panels generate?

No. The surveyor may have seen the inverter, the isolators and the cables. They did not carry out a generation test, and a home survey does not certify the electrical installation. A display that is dark on a dull day is not a failure, and a glowing display is not a test certificate.

Last reviewed 24 October 2026. Written for buyers in England and Wales unless this answer says otherwise. No named surveyor has signed this page. It is general guidance, not a report on your house, and not legal advice.

What is the fuller explanation?

Inverters are often on a loft wall or in a cupboard, with DC cables from the roof and AC cables towards the consumer unit. The survey can note damage, a missing cover, or cables that look unsupported. It cannot say the array is isolated correctly, that the roof fixings are sound, or that the system is producing what the installer once claimed. Those are different inspections. Do not switch isolators during a viewing to watch the screen wake up. That is not the survey, and it is not safe to improvise.

Paperwork the seller may hold is an installer record, not an EICR of the house. If you commission an electrical inspection, ask whether the solar equipment is inside the scope. GOV.UK’s landlord rules, including inspection at least every five years, do not require an owner-occupier seller to produce that report. Any C1, C2, C3 or FI code belongs to the electrician’s report. Do not translate a loft inverter into those letters yourself, and do not treat them as RICS ratings. The survey limit should stay visible: equipment seen, generation not tested.

What should you ask your surveyor?

Did you see the inverter, and did you see any damage, or only the box?
Did you test generation? The answer should be no unless an extra was agreed.
Were certificates shown to you, or should the solicitor ask the seller?

What are the typical next steps?

Ask the seller for the solar paperwork and read the address and the kit it names.
Do not operate isolators as a homemade test.
If electrical condition matters, tell the electrician the inverter is there so it is not silently left out.

Costs vary with the building and with who you instruct. Where this page does not cite a published figure, ask the surveyor, a relevant specialist, or your solicitor for a written quote. Do not treat a forum average as the price.

Also asked about this

Does a bright display mean the roof fixings were checked?

No. Generation, if it were tested, would still not be a look at how the panels are held down.

Is the inverter a substitute for looking at the consumer unit?

No. They can be in different places. Seeing one does not inspect the other.