People with Octopus Energy can spread the cost of solar panels over seven years under new scheme

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Octopus Energy customers will be able to use “buy now pay later” to fund and install solar panels, as part of a new deal with digital lender Zopa Bank.

It means households can spread the cost of installation over several years.Octopus, which is now the UK’s biggest electricity supplier with nearly seven million customers, said the new financing offer means more people will benefit from the “cheap, clean energy source”.

Households making use of the new finance products will be able to buy and install Octopus solar panels, spreading to cost in up to 84 monthly payments over seven years.While ‘buy now pay later’, or BNPL, schemes are typically interest-free, the larger size of the loan from Octopus will see customers charged a 9.9 per cent annual percentage rate (APR).

Octopus charges around £9,200 for installing 10 solar panels and a five kilowatt hour (kWh) battery.The new financing options will also be launched for people buying and installing app-controlled EV chargers, which fast-charge electric cars.BNPL has typically been offered for customers on products like clothing, home essentials, furniture and electricals, through providers like Klarna and Clearpay.In general, BNPL can be a way for people to spread the cost of purchases or defer payments to a later date, without incurring interest.