Faulty solar panels triggered 212 rooftop fires last year, new figures show, raising concerns about the technology’s expansion across the UK. [some emphasis, links added]
A leading insurer has found that fires involving solar panels were up 37pc in 2025, damaging 102 homes as well as other hospitals, schools and retailers.
QBE, the commercial property insurer behind the research, found that [faulty installations with substandard fittings and poor connections caused most fires].
Adrian Simmonds, the risk manager at QBE, also warned that the rate of fires was rising at more than double the rate of installations.
Solar panel installations rose by 52pc between 2022 and 2025, compared with a 133pc increase in solar panel fires over the same three-year period.
“Poor cabling and connectors are the leading cause, with fires often spreading to the wider building,” said Mr Simmonds.
“It is clear installation quality and fire safety are not keeping pace with the speed of deployment. Safe solar panel installation and maintenance are essential to reducing the number of fires.”
The findings raise fresh concerns over Ed Miliband’s rapid net-zero expansion in recent years, as the former energy secretary pushed for a fourfold increase in solar output by 2035.
Almost two million solar panels were installed across the UK in 2025.
QBE’s analysis is based on Freedom of Information requests sent to each of the UK’s fire services to see how many blazes were caused by solar installations.
The research was released after a series of high-profile incidents.
Around 250 people were evacuated from an Ikea store in London after panels caught ablaze in October last year, while a similar blaze occurred at Malton, Norton & District Hospital in North Yorkshire in July.
This led to the site’s mental health services unit being destroyed, with the fire being started by solar panels on the building’s roof.
QBE’s criticism of installation standards was backed by the Association of British Insurers (ABI), which said poorly installed or maintained solar systems could invalidate insurance policies.
Read rest at The Telegraph
