Solar and Battery Contract Review: Cancelling a Door-to-Door Sale, Finance and Red Flags (Australia, 2026)

Prepared by Claim Done from the Australian Consumer Law, the Competition and Consumer Regulations 2010, the National Credit Code, and the ACCC, ASIC, Moneysmart, DCCEEW, Clean Energy Regulator and Solar Victoria pages listed under Sources. Last checked 8 November 2026.

Solar and battery contracts at a glance

Can I cancel a solar contract signed at the door?

Usually yes, if the sale was unsolicited. An agreement is an “unsolicited consumer agreement” if it was made after negotiations face to face away from the seller’s business premises, or by phone, where you did not invite the seller “to come to that place, or to make a telephone call”, and the total price is more than $100 or not known (ACL s 69). For solar:

• A public place, such as a shopping centre stand, counts (s 69(1AA)).
• “An invitation merely to quote a price for a supply is not taken … to be an invitation to enter into negotiations” (s 69(2)). In our reading, asking for a quote and then being sold to at home can still be an unsolicited agreement.
• Leaving your name or contact details for a purpose other than negotiating is not an invitation (s 69(1A)(a)).

If you say the agreement was unsolicited, it is presumed to be unless the seller proves otherwise (s 70(1)). The ACCC puts it simply: “If you agree to buy a solar system in an unsolicited sale, you have a 10-day cooling-off period where you can freely cancel.”

How long do I have to cancel?

The termination period is the longest of these (s 82(3)):

Business days exclude Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays where the agreement was made. You can cancel by oral or written notice, even if the agreement has been fully carried out (s 82(1)-(2)). Written notice can go to the street address or email in the agreement, needs no special form, and a posted notice takes effect when posted (s 82(4)-(6)).

The seller must not call on Sundays or public holidays, before 9 am, or after 6 pm on weekdays (5 pm on Saturday) unless you agreed otherwise, must state its purpose and identity before negotiating, and must leave when asked (ss 73-75).

No installation and no payment in the first 10 business days

During the 10 business days the seller must not supply the goods or services, or “accept any payment, or any other consideration, in connection with those goods or services” (s 86(1)). The exceptions do not cover a solar or battery system priced above $500. If you have already paid a deposit or set up a direct debit, you still keep the right to cancel and are owed an immediate refund (ss 82(2), 84). Taking payment or installing early is also one of the breaches that extends your period to 6 months.

What the paperwork must contain

For an unsolicited sale, the agreement must:

• set out all the terms and the total price, or how it is calculated (s 79);
• have a front page headed “Important Notice to the Consumer” stating: “You have a right to cancel this agreement within 10 business days from and including the day after you signed or received this agreement”, signed and dated by you (CCR regs 85-86);
• come with a termination notice form;
• show the supplier’s name, ABN or ACN, street address and email (s 79).

You must get a copy immediately after signing (s 78). A term that limits or waives the termination right is void (ss 89-90). A seller that breached these rules (other than s 85) “cannot enforce the agreement” against you (s 93(1)), and it is responsible for its third-party salespeople (s 77).

What happens when you cancel

• The agreement is treated as rescinded, and any related contract or instrument, including a guarantee or a mortgage in the seller’s favour, is void (s 83). Tied finance from the seller’s linked lender is dealt with separately (see below).
• The seller must refund all payments immediately (s 84).
• You return goods that have not been used up within a reasonable time, or tell the seller where to collect them. Goods not collected within 30 days become yours (s 85).
• Cancelling in an extended period, you can be liable for damage from not taking reasonable care of the goods, and for services supplied after the 10 days (s 85(3)-(6)).
• The seller cannot sue, chase or default-list you for amounts under the cancelled agreement (s 88).

Solar battery finance and buy now pay later

The ACCC says the cooling-off right applies “regardless of whether the consumer also entered into a finance agreement”, and that you should “send the cancellation notice to both the finance company and the solar supplier”. The automatic voiding of related contracts does not include a tied loan (ACL s 83(2)).

Instead, under the National Credit Code, if a sale is rescinded or discharged and there is a tied loan or tied continuing credit contract from the seller’s linked credit provider, you may terminate the loan, or be credited with the credit and interest charges (NCC s 135). The notice must be in writing (s 137). This does not apply if you arranged the finance yourself without the seller or lender inducing you (s 135(7)).

Buy now pay later for solar

• Since 10 June 2025, buy now pay later contracts are generally regulated credit under the National Credit Code, even if no charge is made for the credit (NCC s 13B(2)).
• ASIC says anyone engaging in credit activities involving these contracts must hold an Australian credit licence from that date.
• Moneysmart says: “All buy now pay later providers are required to have complaints and hardship services.”

The lender can answer for the seller

Where the seller regularly refers buyers to a lender or has its forms on hand, that lender is a “linked credit provider” (NCC s 127). It is jointly liable with the seller for misrepresentation, breach or failure of consideration (s 129), and under the Australian Consumer Law for failures of the consumer guarantees, with defences (ACL ss 278-280).

If you told the seller you needed finance to pay and, after reasonable efforts, could not get it on reasonable terms, you may terminate the sale (NCC s 134).

Solar contract red flags

• A deposit taken or installation booked inside the 10 business days of a door-to-door or phone sale.
• “No cooling-off” or “non-refundable deposit” wording in an unsolicited sale.
• Headline claims such as “no cost solar”, “you are eligible for the government subsidies” or “the solar system or battery will pay for itself”, which the ACCC says can be misleading. A claim about future savings made without reasonable grounds is taken to be misleading (ACL s 4).
• A right to substitute different panels, inverters or batteries “of equivalent quality”.
• Clauses excluding the consumer guarantees, limiting liability to repair or replacement, or making the manufacturer’s warranty your only remedy.
• No total cost for finance against the cash price.
• One-sided terms: seller-only cancellation fees, forfeiture of the whole deposit, or price rises after signing without a right to leave.

Unfair terms in a standard form consumer contract are void, and for contracts made or renewed from 9 November 2023 proposing or relying on one is a contravention. For a company, the maximum penalty for conduct from 28 March 2026 is the greatest of $100,000,000, 3 times the benefit or 30% of adjusted turnover (ACL ss 23, 224).

If the system or the installation is faulty

Panels, inverters and batteries carry the consumer guarantees of acceptable quality, fitness for a disclosed purpose and matching their description (ACL ss 54-56), and the installation must be done “with due care and skill” (s 60) and be fit for any purpose, and achieve any result, you made known (s 61). These cannot be excluded (s 64), and a household system cannot be limited to repair or replacement (s 64A).

If you paid one supplier for products and installation, the ACCC says it is responsible for the remedy, “Even if that solar supplier has subcontracted a third party for installation.”

Installed panels cannot be rejected under the goods rules if they cannot be removed without damage (s 262(1)(d)). In our reading, a major failure in the installation is the better route: if you terminate the installation contract for a major failure, the connected goods are “taken to have been rejected”, the supplier must refund their price, and it must collect goods that would cost too much to return (ss 267-270).

Rebates: STCs and the Cheaper Home Batteries Program

• Small-scale technology certificates. “Most system owners assign the right to sell STCs to an agent in exchange for a discount or delayed cash payment” (Clean Energy Regulator), until the scheme ends in 2030.
• Batteries. From 1 July 2025 the Australian Government funds “around a 30% discount on eligible small-scale battery systems connected to new or existing rooftop solar”. Eligible batteries are 5 to 100 kWh, on the approved product list, installed by an accredited installer, with one battery system per premises. On-grid systems must be capable of joining a virtual power plant, but “Participation in a VPP is not required”.
• Timing. “The discount that you are entitled to is determined by the STC Factor on the date the battery is installed.” The factor stepped down on 1 May 2026 and steps down every 6 months to 2030, so a delayed installation can mean a smaller discount than quoted.
• Price display. DCCEEW says the discount must be “clearly displayed against the price of the system”.
• Victoria. Solar Victoria’s rebate of up to $1,400 is lost if you install before your eligibility is approved; it recommends that any deposit paid before then be fully refundable.

What our review checks

Upload the solar or battery contract and any finance paperwork and get a plain-English report written for the home owner, usually about 5 minutes after you pay. It:

• puts your cancellation rights first if the sale was made at the door or by phone, with the last day to cancel
• checks the paperwork, and any deposit or installation date, against the unsolicited sale rules
• works out the real cost, including any finance or buy now pay later, against the cash price
• lists the equipment, sizes and performance or savings claims, and flags substitution rights
• checks warranties, exclusion clauses, the rebate discount and one-sided terms
• gives you the questions to ask before installation

The report explains what your contract says and what the law provides. It is not legal advice and does not assess your roof or the system’s design. You decide whether to go ahead.

Get your solar contract reviewed – $29

Questions people ask

Can I cancel a solar contract signed at my door?

Yes, within 10 business days, if the seller came uninvited and the price is over $100. It is an unsolicited consumer agreement, and you can cancel by oral or written notice even after signing (ACL ss 69, 82). The period is longer if the seller broke the rules.

I only asked for a quote. Is the sale still unsolicited?

It can be. The law says an invitation merely to quote a price is not an invitation to negotiate (ACL s 69(2)), so a sale made after a quote request can still be an unsolicited agreement with a cooling-off right.

Can a solar company take a deposit at the door?

No. In an unsolicited sale the seller must not accept any payment, or install the system, during the 10 business day termination period (ACL s 86). If it does, the period extends to 6 months and you are still owed a refund if you cancel.

Can I cancel solar after 10 days?

Sometimes. The period becomes 3 months if the seller called outside permitted hours, did not identify itself or would not leave, and 6 months if the paperwork was wrong or it took payment or installed within the 10 business days (ACL s 82(3)).

How do I cancel a solar contract?

Tell the seller, orally or in writing, within the termination period; written notice can go to the street address or email in the agreement (ACL s 82). Send written notice to the finance company too, as the ACCC advises, and keep copies.

What happens to my solar finance or buy now pay later if I cancel?

It does not end automatically. Give written notice to the lender: where the finance came from the seller’s linked credit provider, you can terminate the tied loan or be credited with the charges once the sale is rescinded (NCC ss 135, 137).

What are the red flags in a solar contract?

A deposit or installation within 10 business days of a door-to-door sale, waiver of cooling-off, “no cost solar” or “pays for itself” claims, a right to substitute equipment, clauses excluding consumer guarantees, and finance with no total cost shown against the cash price.

Can the solar company limit its warranty to repair or replacement?

Not for a household system. The consumer guarantees cannot be excluded, and the option to limit liability to repair or replacement applies only to goods not ordinarily acquired for household use (ACL ss 64, 64A).

When is the battery discount worked out?

On the installation date, not the signing date. DCCEEW says the discount is set by the STC factor on the date the battery is installed, and that factor steps down every 6 months to 2030.

Is the solar contract review legal advice?

No. It is a plain-English report on your contract, your cancellation rights, the cost and what to ask the seller. It does not assess the system’s design or your roof. Claim Done is not a law firm.

Related guides

• Solar installer won’t fix it? How to get your money back
• Solar installer won’t honour the warranty?
• Solar system underperforming or defective?
• All contract reviews

Claim Done is not a law firm and does not give legal advice; this page is general information about Australian law as at 8 November 2026.

Sources (checked 8 November 2026)

• Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth), Schedule 2 (Australian Consumer Law), Compilation No. 167 (ss 3, 4, 23, 54-64A, 69-93, 224, 259-270, 278-280)
• Competition and Consumer Regulations 2010, Compilation No. 100 (regs 77A, 82-95)
• National Credit Code (NCCP Act, Schedule 1), Compilation No. 52 (ss 13B, 13D, 127-137)
• ACCC: solar panels and systems
• ACCC: solar panel systems and home batteries (business)
• ACCC: telemarketing and door-to-door sales
• ASIC: buy now pay later credit contracts, credit licensing
• Moneysmart: buy now pay later services
• DCCEEW: Cheaper Home Batteries Program (and its eligibility and STC pages)
• energy.gov.au: solar PV and batteries
• Clean Energy Regulator: Small-scale Renewable Energy Scheme
• Solar Victoria: solar panel (PV) rebate