WHAT WAS CLAIMED
Solar companies are obligated to provide panels to residents of various cities for no net cost under a government scheme.
OUR VERDICT
False. There is no such scheme.
AAP FACTCHECK - Homeowners are not entitled to receive solar panels for "absolutely no net cost" under a government policy, despite claims on social media.
The federal government and experts say there is no such scheme or mandate in operation.
The claim is made in several Facebook videos shared by a page called 'Solar Sprout AU'.
"It turns out that if you live in Cairns, they have to give you solar panels for absolutely no net cost. All you have to do is ask," a voiceover says, claiming solar companies are trying to keep this information secret.
The voiceover describes "a new 2025 program called the Renewable Energy Scheme" that would allow homeowners in approved postcodes "to switch to solar without having to pay anything out of pocket," then prompts viewers to complete a linked questionnaire.
The Solar Sprout AU page repeats the claim in several identical and near-identical Facebook ads with the location changed.
Another page called Solar Sprout WA, which appears to be linked to Solar Sprout AU, claims the same government scheme is operating in Perth.
However, energy experts say the claim is false as no government policy obliges solar retailers to install panels without any upfront costs to consumers.
The Clean Energy Regulator (CER), which administers federal government renewable energy programs, said the closest scheme is the Small-scale Renewable Energy Scheme.
The program offers certificates to households and businesses to get discounts on solar systems of about 30 per cent, but not free systems.
The regulator said combining these with state-based incentives could reduce, but not entirely offset, the upfront cost of systems for consumers.
"Our understanding is stacking these incentives would not result in no net cost systems; however, they may become heavily discounted," a CER spokesperson told AAP FactCheck in a statement.
Martina Linnenluecke, a climate policy expert at the University of Technology Sydney, said the claim in the post was not correct.
"There is no rule or policy in Australia that mandates solar companies to install solar panels for Australians," Professor Linnenluecke told AAP FactCheck.
"There are incentives available for when someone wants to install a rooftop solar system at their home or business, and they *might* be able to get an upfront discount on the purchase price of your system. But there are a range of eligibility requirements."
Rohan Best, an energy economics expert at Macquarie University, said there was no evidence of any scheme focused on a specific city.
"I can't think of any 'city' schemes which have ever operated," Prof Best told AAP FactCheck.
"They are usually either Federal/state/local council."
He also questioned whether solar providers would want to prevent the public from knowing about a hypothetical scheme, as it would likely be the government, rather than the companies, that would foot the bill.
AAP FactCheck completed the survey linked in one of the posts.
After providing personal details, a page loaded saying a provider "may then recieve (sic) an offer for a 'no-net-cost' installation", contradicting the claim the providers were obligated to provide a no net cost deal.
The survey also references a "2024 Solar Rebate", not the "2025 program" mentioned in the video.
AAP FactCheck was unable to find any listed address, phone number or email for either company or any credible customer reviews.
The links to the 'Terms' and 'Privacy' pages on the associated website are also broken.
The Solar Sprout AU and the Solar Sprout WA Facebook pages did not respond to direct messages sent by AAP FactCheck.
The Consumer Action Law Centre said the videos appeared to be designed to harvest users' personal information.
"With its AI generated true-blue Aussie hard-sell 'hurry do it now' approach this ad certainly fits the bill of ads we are targeting to ban," a media advisor told AAP FactCheck.
"And it appears a few comments recognise what Sprout is up to too."
The centre advises Australians to avoid such ads or delete them from their social media feeds.
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