Selling a Cape Town property with solar panels, an inverter or batteries? Check the electrical certificates and registration paperwork early. The existing electrical installation, the added alternative supply and the electricity supplier’s approval involve different responsibilities. A document covering one does not automatically settle the others.
Inspecto has served Cape Town’s property industry since 1995. We inspect the property’s electrical installation. Inspecto does not issue solar or alternative-supply certificates; we refer specialist certification to NPH Electrical. Tell us about the system when requesting your property compliance inspections so the responsibilities can be clarified.
Does the house’s electrical COC cover the solar installation?
Check what the certificate actually covers and when the work was done. A certificate issued before solar or an inverter was installed cannot, by itself, document that later work. Ask for the certificate and test report for the original installation and the certification for additions or alterations. The installing contractor should identify the work covered by their certificate.
Where different contractors have worked on the property, their responsibilities need to be clear, particularly around shared distribution boards and the connection between the house and the alternative supply. See our Electrical Certificate of Compliance guide for the main property’s inspection.
Is an electrical certificate the same as SSEG approval?
No. Electrical certification and the electricity supplier’s embedded-generation approval are separate matters. SSEG means small-scale embedded generation. The City of Cape Town provides an application and authorisation process for relevant systems connected to its supply. If Eskom supplies the property, check the applicable Eskom process.
Use the City of Cape Town’s current SSEG guidance to confirm the requirements for your system. Ask the installer or specialist to check which commissioning documents and professional sign-offs apply. A COC alone should not be treated as proof of municipal authorisation.
What documents should a seller gather?
- The existing electrical COC and its accompanying test report.
- Certificates and test reports for the solar, inverter or battery installation and subsequent alterations.
- The electricity supplier’s approval or registration correspondence and any applicable connection agreement.
- Installer details, equipment information and available commissioning documents.
- For a rented or financed system, the agreement and written confirmation of what happens when the property is sold.
Give these to the relevant inspector and conveyancing attorney early. Missing documents, changes to the installation and unclear responsibility can take time to resolve. Do not assume the purchaser automatically takes over an existing supplier or rental agreement.
What if the original installer is unavailable?
Locate the documents you already have and explain what is missing. An appropriately registered specialist will need to assess the installation and establish what can be certified. Replacing missing paperwork is not simply an administrative exercise: defects may require attention. Inspecto can refer you to NPH Electrical for the alternative-supply certification while dealing with the property’s other compliance inspections.
Can solar affect the property transfer?
It can complicate the process when certification, the installation’s condition or supplier paperwork is unresolved. Discuss the position with your conveyancing attorney and the relevant specialist before committing to a transfer timetable. Inspecto’s role is to identify the compliance work within our inspection scope and explain any specialist certification required.
Watch Inspecto’s short solar explanations
The electrical and solar video guides cover shared certificates, rental systems, supplier approval and selling a property with solar. For the complete collection, visit our compliance video library.
Start your property compliance request
Use our inspection pricing calculator to select the property’s compliance inspections and continue to the instruction form. The standard calculator covers Electrical, Water, Gas, Beetle and Electric Fence inspections; it does not quote for specialist solar certification or municipal applications.
See which property compliance certificates may apply.
References: Electrical Installation Regulations, 2009; City of Cape Town SSEG application guidance. Confirm the current requirements for the particular installation with the relevant authority and registered specialist.