We conduct inspections on small-scale renewable energy systems to ensure installations meet requirements and are eligible for small-scale technology certificates (STCs).
It’s important to understand your obligations following an inspection under the:
- Renewable Energy (Electricity) Regulations 2001
- Australian standards
- relevant electrical safety rules or regulations in the state or territory you operate in.
Inspection outcomes are formally recorded and shared with:
- the system owner
- Solar Accreditation Australia (SAA)
- your jurisdictional electrical safety regulator.
We take compliance seriously and may take action against those who do the wrong thing. As an installer participating in the Small-scale Renewable Energy Scheme, you are expected to maintain high standards and promptly rectify issues.
SAA or your electrical safety regulator may request that you return to site to rectify any non-compliance. They may also initiate further actions based on the inspection report findings.
Failure to demonstrate improvements may result in enforcement action. This can include removing you from participating in our schemes, and you being ineligible to create STCs. Non-compliance will also affect your accreditation status with SAA.
What to do after an inspection
Below are the steps you must take based on the outcome of your inspection report.
An 'Adequate' rating does not mean the system is fully compliant. It indicates that while the system is safe, recommendations for improvement may have been identified.
You are strongly encouraged to:
- rectify all non-compliant items listed in the inspection report
- take clear, date-stamped photographic evidence of all work addressing non-compliance
- review and improve your installation processes to prevent recurrence
- revisit previous installations where similar issues may exist
- communicate clearly with the system owner regarding any corrective actions.
A 'Substandard – technical non-compliant' rating indicates that the system does not meet one or more required standards or industry guidelines and could potentially lead to equipment failure and electrical safety issues.
You must:
- return to site as soon as possible to rectify all non-compliant items
- take clear, date-stamped photographic evidence of all rectification work – this may be requested by SAA or your electrical safety regulator at any time
- communicate clearly with the system owner regarding the rectification process
- review your installation practices and quality assurance processes
- revisit previous installations for similar issues.
An 'Unsafe' rating is issued when the system poses an immediate safety risk.
If a system is identified as unsafe, the inspector will shut it down immediately to prevent harm. The system must not be re-energised until all unsafe conditions are resolved.
You must return to site as soon as possible to:
- rectify all unsafe and non-compliant items listed in the report
- take clear, date-stamped photographic evidence of all rectification work – this may be requested by SAA or your electrical safety regulator at any time
- communicate clearly with the system owner
- ensure the system is made safe before re-energisation
- review your installation practices and conduct a full process audit
- revisit previous installations for similar risks.
Where a system is rated 'Unsafe' or 'Substandard – technical non-compliant' due to external factors, such as product recalls or third-party incidents, the installer will still receive the inspection report and may help the homeowner in addressing the identified issues. However, in these cases, the installer may not be responsible for the cause if the rating.
How to rectify installation issues
After receiving a draft inspection report, you should return to site as soon as possible to address non-compliant work.
You should also return to sites of previous installs to correct similar issues.
By addressing issues promptly, you protect both consumer safety and your reputation as a professional installer.
Installers need to capture clear, date stamped photos of all rectification work, including any recommendation for improvement items that have been addressed.
Photo evidence must be available in the form of:
- close ups of key corrections
- wide shots showing system context.
These records may be requested at any stage by us, the Solar Accreditation Australia (SAA) or electrical safety regulators.
Installers should communicate openly with the system owner about what was found and how it has been rectified. This level of transparency strengthens trust and helps to avoid disputes.
To prevent reoccurring issues, we recommend adopting an internal quality assurance checklist to use before leaving install sites. This should comply with relevant Australian standards:
- AS/NZS 3000
- AS/NZS 5033
- AS/NZS 4777.
We encourage installers to also undergo refresher courses through SAA including to complete CPD courses covering the non-compliance identified. Installers can also look for training delivered by other industry providers.
Consequences of non-compliance
Inspection outcomes are shared with state and territory electrical safety regulators and SAA. Ongoing non-compliance may lead to further regulatory action and sanctions from these agencies.
Rectification reduces the likelihood of future follow-up inspections from consumer complaints.
Repeated non-compliant inspections may affect your SAA accreditation and could limit your eligibility for STCs.
Under the Clean Energy (Electricity) Regulations 2001, we may declare an installer ineligible to install under the SRES if:
- three or more inspection reports have adverse findings on separate occasions (regulations 47)
- three or more written statements with false or misleading information are provided, including both solar PV and battery systems (section 20AG).
Non-compliance is not just administrative – it may pose serious safety risks to consumers, properties and grid stability.
Correcting the issues protects everyone involved and prevents further interventions, such as the need for other electricians or trades.