GivEnergy support experiences? - email, remote, callouts

I had my system installed over a year ago which included 20 panels, 5Kw Hybrid inverter, 3 x 8.2Kw batteries.

As a minor observation the installation generally went well but disappointed to find the EPS was not part of the installation (not even a single socket). Would suggest people check that as part of initial installation as my experience has been poor trying to get installer back. Would suggest GivEnergy put more emphasis on their approved installers offering and connecting the functionality - which is clearly one of the reasons many people install batteries.

I had contact with GivEnergy support by email on a few minor points (regarding the app and usage etc) soon after installation. All of which got adequate and reasonably prompt responses.

However the support since I had a more major issue has been dreadful - what is other peoples experience?

Having reported a fault with one of the 3 batteries on 29th Aug it took until 21st Sept to get an engineer out from the installer. Somewhat disappointed to see the only check was that it was correctly wired which seemed strange when the system had been commissioned around a year earlier!! Was here less than half an hour. seemed like little achieved and was supposedly in contact with GE support.

on 5th Oct another installer electrician arrived ... who spoke to GivEnergy while here.
Rewired to change priority order to Master on the faulty battery. After various diagnostic conversations over many hours it was established the fault was from 16th Aug when there was a Givenergy software update? Apparently same fault has been seen at at least one other installation.
So after a full day on diagnostics it seems that an Electronic Board needs changing.

No date provided for a repair or replacement despite chasing GE support and warranty teams on multiple occasions.

I phoned GE to be told "all" engineers are booked until 31st Oct and they cant give me a date. They only have 2 for the whole country it seems.

Somewhat disingenuously told that my fault dates back to 5th Oct - when it was finally diagnosed. Ignoring the facts that it was originally reported on 29th Aug and took forever to get GE & installer to get on the case.

So I still await resolution... no date for repair/replacement still. 2 months after initial report.

My recommendation to anyone in same position is to push much more aggressively than I did. I foolishly expected better.

Would be interested in other peoples experiences and suggestions for how to get this escalated?

have finally got a GE visit set for 11th Nov. Over 2 months from original report of fault.

can only hope the battery is repaired/replaced on this visit - will update this thread after

I reported the problem on October 24th and the engineer came on November 1st and fixed it.
I used the live chat on the Givenergy website to report the issue and also took a video on my phone and uploaded it via live chat to demonstrate battery behavior and noise coming from the breaker and inverter.
I guess the response time may vary depending on the actual problem.

Might also depend where you are in the country. I know they are hiring more engineers but like most places getting new staff is hard at the moment. Couple of places I work have been advertiseing for the same rolls for over a year and had zero applicants.

I am not defending GE. I agree there are issues that need sorting before they expand further.

that also says it all about their "systems" for support!
reported fault 29th Aug took to 5th Oct to diagnose and still waiting for engineer visit that is set for 11th Nov

if its correct that there are only 2 engineers for the entire country then I suspect they are expanding faster than their systems, support teams etc can cope with. Liable to lead to significant reputational damage if not cured quickly.

Tim Adams Seems to be a common experience. Some are getting reasonable responses, whilst many others like you are waiting too long in my opinion. I previously had prompt support from GE, had a battery replaced and it only took two weeks I'd say start to finish. But since then it has been down hill. They do seem to be expanding their customer base faster than their support infrastructure - pretty common when small companies grow quickly.

Vitali
Hi am doing the waiting game for engineer to visit am curious did your fault go along the lines of a clicking noise and battery not starting ?

hobbes1966 not that I was aware of. I noticed the lights were wrong on 29th Aug but it transpires the original issue was around 2 weeks earlier. But had gone unnoticed.

Really cant see why the app with dongle connection does not raise an alert if the system is not functioning correctly

hobbes1966 Yes, you're right. It was a bad battery board in the inverter. You can flip down the breaker between battery and inverter, then turn on the battery and it should start normally and stay on...

I've got the same problem with clicking battery on Gen 2 Hybrid Inverter. My concern is that this problem has occurred after only 3 months of use and I am concerned that it could happen again after a board replacement . Engineer is booked to visit this Saturday which means I have been waiting 4 weeks!

anthonypar I understand your concern. 🙁
My inverter only worked for a month, so I wrote a post about the reliability of the inverter and all products from Givenergy in general, so that other users can share their experience. As it turned out, most are happy and have never experienced the failure of the inverter.

anthonypar Can I ask what you mean by clicking?

When my battery has run completely flat my inverter sits there clicking every 30 seconds or so in a contiuous loop until the battery is charged overnight on Octopus Go. Can believe it is supposed to do this.

Battery has 4-5% in it.

My battery is half full. I believe the clicking noise is the battery trying to communicate with the inverter and is due to a faulty board in the inverter. After about 15 seconds the battery shows a red error light and shuts itself down.

Tim Adams so the booked visit for 11th Nov did not happen. No calls or notifications.

I called GE to be told that "sickness" had caused postponement to 22nd Nov which was bad enough. With other emails later from GE saying 11th Nov was not in their diary. Despite the installer being given that date by GE in an email as well as an acknowledgement in my call that 11th Nov was supposed to have been the date.

All extremely disappointing and brings into question confidence in the company, systems and support

Tim Adams too bad 🙁

The email support does seem to be a bit of a black hole. No acknowledgement of receipt, no issue tracking number...just silence. I tried chasing up via live chat after hearing nothing for weeks only to get a "still gathering data, we'll be in touch", then more silence.

I have given up. Its a good idea to have reference numbers for each problem for easier follow up.

I have been waiting for the elusive phone call to fix my EPS

kai According to George Rawding, they do log emails but if you want an answer, then phone or web chat are the only viable options. When you speak/chat to a real person, you do (in my experience) feel that they want to help sort the problem.

ispookie666 I have been waiting for the elusive phone call to fix my EPS

Which is?

@Tim Its not worked since the main board was replaced on the AC coupled inverter.

Tim Adams
so.... having reported a fault on 29th Aug
Initial installer visit 21st Sep simply checked connections!
Second installer visit 5th Oct took many hours (mostly waiting for GE responses/call back)
GE engineer visit 11th Nov cancelled on the day (not even told)

GE engineer visit booked for 22nd Nov.
On the day had 2 emails - one saying engineer would be with me. Other one telling me no visit set as they awaited information from installer. Frankly shocking internal comms & organisation at GE

In reality engineer came on day as arranged and swiftly changed the board in the battery - which was always expected to be the issue. Engineer was excellent. But very disappointed with almost 3 months delay to repair

Tim Adams have you posted this 3 times in different threads?

I'm still waiting.. decided to give them a call as I had not received any contact for 4 weeks.
Still in the Q for scheduling an engineer's visit.

hobbes1966
Lovely Chap from GE investigated replaced Inverter and battery board and now all back up and running .
Bad bit of wiring was the culprit .

hobbes1966 I'm glad this has been sorted. Would you be able to share what the bad bit of wiring was?