Welcome to this review of RECC’s activities in 2017!

I hope you will find the information in the review interesting and useful. This report describes a huge body of work that RECC carried out during the year. My thanks go to our members who have supported us throughout this roller-coaster journey. We couldn’t have done any of it without you! My thanks also go to the RECC team members who have worked tirelessly throughout.

We have broken down our activities into sections including: promoting the code, benefits of membership, overview of members, enforcing compliance, resolving consumer complaints and resourcing the RECC team.

 

Highlights

During 2017, we:

• ramped up our activities in new areas such as battery storage systems, voltage optimisers and other add-ons. As part of this we started to look at the big picture of how small-scale domestic renewable energy systems can play a part in a larger, connected, decentralised energy system. We are part of the Smart Power Industries Alliance, working for increased flexibility across the network, providing greater access for local generation. We also worked with the Association of Decentralised Energy on guidance for domestic consumers looking to take advantage of demand-side response and ‘time-of-use’ tariffs. Finally, we started to look at how the EV charging infrastructure can interact with small-scale renewable energy systems. This work continues into 2018.

• worked with MCS and other stakeholders on a revised MCS standard for heat pumps. Version 5 of MIS 3005 was finally introduced in January 2018. As part of the preparatory work RECC continued to analyse heat pump estimates prepared by the members we audited, and published our findings in an update to the report published in 2016. Going forward we contribute guidance as to how to comply with Version 5, and analyse the results.

• worked with Government and stakeholders on extending the high levels of consumer protection in the renewables sector to related energy efficiency sectors as part of the work on Each Home Counts. Throughout RECC has been adamant that standards should not be allowed to fall, and that the Government must build on, rather than undermine, the successes we have enjoyed in our sector.

 

The year in brief

In brief, during 2017, we:

• had 2,200, and received 315 new membership applications
• closely assessed 321 members’ business models for compliance with the Code
• monitored 315 self-assessment compliance checks from new applicants, with further in-depth due diligence checks on 23 (7.3%)
• referred 5 applicants to the Applications Panel for a decision on whether the business should be admitted to the Code
• updated and streamlined its desk-based and site-based audit strategies
• received 40 Consumer Satisfaction Questionnaires submitted directly
• asked 25 members to respond to suspected breaches of the Code and/or Bye Laws
• invoked formal non-compliance action invoked against 10 members
• of these, 2 agreed to a Consent Order, 1 had its membership terminated and 2 were referred to an independent Non-Compliance Panel Hearing
• both companies referred to the a Non-Compliance Panel Hearing had their membership terminated.

 

Find the full report here.