{"id":40407,"date":"2020-06-15T14:13:07","date_gmt":"2020-06-15T03:43:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/?p=40407"},"modified":"2023-07-24T16:23:28","modified_gmt":"2023-07-24T06:53:28","slug":"accc-approved-retailer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/accc-approved-retailer\/","title":{"rendered":"My ACCC Submission: The CEC Approved Retailer Scheme Is Not Voluntary & Is Anti-Competitive"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"ACCC

If you want to sell residential solar in Victoria or batteries in SA, CEC Approved Solar Retailer membership is de-facto mandatory.<\/p><\/div>\r\n

The Australian Competition And Consumer Commission — ACCC for short — is seeking submissions<\/a> on whether or not the Clean Energy Council’s Approved Solar Retailer scheme should be renewed. <\/p>\r\n

I think the answer is obvious, so any submission I make should only be a formality.\u00a0 Despite this, I’m definitely submitting and not letting the opportunity pass by.\u00a0 I’m going to submit harder than the Italian 10th Army after Operation Compass<\/a>.1<\/a><\/sup>\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

My position is the Approved Retailer Scheme should not be renewed.\u00a0 Not in its current form.\u00a0 This is because it is — in practice — not voluntary.\u00a0 It’s also anti-competitive and competition is one of the Cs in ACCC — even though I keep forgetting which one.<\/p>\r\n

Every on-grid solar installer (the individual electrician) in Australia is Clean Energy Council (CEC) accredited.\u00a0 The ACCC is not seeking submissions on changing this solar accreditation scheme.\u00a0 Instead, they are asking for input into renewing their authorisation of the CEC’s Solar Retailer Code of Conduct.\u00a0 Before I show you my brief but succinct and poetically written submission, I will explain the difference between a CEC accreditation and the CEC Approved Retailer scheme.\u00a0 I’ll also quickly cover what the CEC is and how their Approved Retailer Scheme changed from being voluntary to de facto compulsory.\u00a0 This change has resulted in reduced business opportunities for non-members as well as contributing to solar installers in Victoria being driven out of business through no fault of their own.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

What Is The CEC?\u00a0<\/h2>\r\n

The Clean Energy Council is Australia’s peak body for solar power, other renewable energy, and energy storage.\u00a0 In Nepal, peak bodies are unpleasant frozen surprises that litter<\/a> Mount Everest, but in Australia, they are business advocacy groups.\u00a0 Here’s a definition taken straight from Wikipedia:<\/p>\r\n

\r\n

“A peak organisation<\/b> or peak body<\/b> is an Australian<\/a> term for an advocacy group<\/a> or trade association<\/a>, an association of industries or groups with allied interests.<\/sup> They are generally established for the purposes of developing standards<\/a> and processes, or to act on behalf of all members when lobbying<\/a> government or promoting the interests of the members.”<\/p>\r\n<\/blockquote>\r\n

This is how the CEC describe themselves on their website:<\/p>\r\n

\"Clean<\/p>\r\n

This sounds good, but I would say this part…<\/p>\r\n

\"\"<\/p>\r\n

…where they say they “represent and work with” solar installers hasn’t really been true for several years as they have clearly acted to the detriment of solar installers that were not part of their privileged Approved Retailer group.\u00a0 Before I go into this, as I mentioned, I’ll explain what a CEC Accredited Installer and a CEC Approved Retailer are.\u00a0 I think it’s important for readers to know the difference, and it’s goddamn vital for me to know, so I’d better go over it to make sure I get it right.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

What Is A CEC Accredited Installer?<\/h2>\r\n

A few years ago I wrote about<\/a> the difference between:<\/p>\r\n

    \r\n
  1. \u00a0A CEC Accredited Installer, and…<\/li>\r\n
  2. \u00a0A CEC Approved Retailer.<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\n

    But you don’t have to go back and read that because I’ll tell you the difference right now.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

    Every solar installer who oversees the installation of solar systems that connect to the grid is a CEC Accredited Installer.\u00a0 Or at least they bloody well better be.\u00a0 Accredited installers are the only people permitted to connect residential and commercial solar systems to the grid and their installations can receive STCs from the Small-scale Renewable Energy Scheme<\/a> (SRES) that lower the cost of solar power.\u00a0\u00a0 This subsidy is usually called the “solar rebate<\/a>“.\u00a0 Technically, that’s not the correct term for it — for a start, it’s not a rebate — but a lot more people understand the term “solar rebate” than “SRES” which sounds like an expression used by kids on the internet.<\/p>\r\n

    \"\"<\/p>\r\n

    To become an accredited installer isn’t easy.\u00a0 It requires training and certification.\u00a0 You don’t want someone who doesn’t know what they are doing putting solar panels on your roof in much the same way you don’t want me giving you a CAT scan.\u00a0 The closest I’ve come to using x-ray equipment is turning on the microwave and radiologists will probably say you’re not supposed to leave people in the CAT scanner until the popping noises stop<\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

    The CEC Accreditation system ensures you can only put solar panels on a roof if you know what you are doing.\u00a0 While a bad installer can cut corners and do sloppy or even dangerous work, they have no excuse because in order to become accredited they have to prove they can do an installation that’s up to standard. \u00a0Opinions vary on the value of accreditation. But then some people say we should just let anyone who wants to, perform brain surgery and allow people to decide themselves whether or not to use their services. I’m actually okay with a reasonable amount of accreditation.\u00a0 The ACCC decision will not affect the accreditation process.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

    What Is A CEC Approved Retailer?<\/h2>\r\n

    CEC Accreditation involves individuals but the CEC Approved Retailer scheme involves businesses. \u00a0It works as an exclusive club.\u00a0 Solar installation companies that:<\/p>\r\n

      \r\n
    1. \u00a0Stick to the Approved Retailer code of conduct<\/li>\r\n
    2. \u00a0Do the extra paperwork being a member requires<\/li>\r\n
    3. \u00a0Pay the membership fees to the CEC<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\n

      ..can apply to join.\u00a0 If accepted they can then use their Approved Solar Retailer status to convince potential customers they do high-quality work and are ethical in their dealings with consumers.\u00a0 It takes time and money to become one, but it could be well worth it if customers decide to go with an Approved Retailer over the competition, or they are willing to pay a premium for work performed by an Approved Retailer.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

      This is how the CEC describes the scheme:<\/p>\r\n

      \"CEC When I explain its basics like that, the Approved Solar Retailer scheme doesn’t sound too bad and, at the start at least, it wasn’t.\u00a0 Installation businesses could decide to join or not as they saw fit and customers were free to choose to use or not use an Approved Retailer as they saw fit.\u00a0 While there were issues around whether or not the CEC should be running the scheme in the first place, in its early days it was not harmful to the solar installation industry or to consumers.\u00a0 Unfortunately, that changed.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

      Conflict Of Interest<\/h2>\r\n

      If it seems strange to you that the organisation in charge of accreditation is also in charge of an exclusive club that solar installation businesses have to pay fees to join, I’d say you’re onto something there.\u00a0 There is clear potential for conflict of interests. \u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

      The CEC is a non-profit organization, but this doesn’t solve the problem.\u00a0 For one thing, people tend to be more concerned with what they personally receive than if the organization they receive it from is profit or non-profit. And the more money an organization brings in the more opportunity there is for larger salaries.\u00a0 But there is no need for money to be involved at all for overreach to occur.\u00a0 As Shakespeare’s Macbeth said…<\/p>\r\n

      \r\n

      “I have no spur to prick the sides of my intent, but only vaulting ambition, which o’erleaps itself.”<\/span><\/span><\/p>\r\n<\/blockquote>\r\n

      I’d say the CEC Solar Retailer scheme has definitely o’erleaped itself and squished a considerable number of businesses that did nothing wrong on the way.<\/p>\r\n

      An Unfair Advantage<\/h2>\r\n

      If someone wanted to start something similar such as Bob’s Approved Solar Retailers or The Solar Justice League or The Avenge-solars, they are clearly going to be at a disadvantage compared to the CEC that is in charge of the accreditation process and gets heaps of free advertising as a result.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

      Also, if Bob’s scheme doesn’t want to run afoul of the ACCC she is going to have to make sure her league doesn’t use its market power to engage in anti-competitive practices.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n