Those are three different milestones. Your system can send surplus electricity to the grid without a paid export account being active. Check the supplier's written confirmation—not just the arrows in your solar app.
Does my energy supplier automatically pay me for solar export?
No. A normal electricity account pays for energy you buy. Being a customer, having a smart meter and installing solar do not automatically create an export payment agreement.
The Smart Export Guarantee (SEG) provides a route to payment for eligible generation in Great Britain, including Scotland. You apply to a supplier offering an export tariff. Your export supplier can differ from your import supplier, although enhanced tariffs may require you to buy electricity from the same company.
Think of installation as getting the equipment working, DNO registration as dealing with the network connection, and export registration as arranging who buys the electricity you send out. Completing one does not prove the others are complete.
What happens after installation, and who does what?
| Stage | Usual responsibility | Evidence to keep |
|---|---|---|
| Commission the system and provide handover documents | Installer | Certificates, manuals and commissioning records |
| Complete the applicable network connection process | Installer working with the DNO | DNO notification acknowledgement or acceptance and any conditions |
| Choose and apply for a paid export tariff | Homeowner, or an expressly agreed assisted application | Application reference and submitted documents |
| Create or transfer the export MPAN and arrange metering | Export supplier coordinating with the DNO and relevant metering parties | Export MPAN, account confirmation and metering status |
| Confirm payment eligibility and start date | Export supplier | Tariff terms, opening reading/date and payment schedule |
| Check the first statement or payment | Homeowner | Paid export kWh, rate and credited amount |
Some installers or supplier installation packages help with the application. Ask what that help includes. “We register your system” may refer only to the DNO or certification. Ask specifically: “Who is applying for my paid export tariff, and how will I know it is active?”
ScottishPower's guidance explicitly distinguishes the installer's technical and DNO work from the customer's SEG application. Do not assume another party has submitted it unless you have confirmation.
Which documents should I collect?
Check your chosen supplier's current list before submitting. For a typical domestic rooftop installation, prepare:
- Your MCS installation certificate, or certification the supplier accepts as equivalent.
- The DNO correspondence required for your connection route—not merely an unacknowledged application.
- Your address, contact details, import account or bill details, and meter serial number.
- A dated photograph of the electricity meter's cumulative export reading, if requested.
- Evidence of ownership or entitlement to receive export payments where required.
- Bank details if payments are made to your bank account.
- Details of batteries, existing export arrangements or Feed-in Tariff payments.
EDF's application guidance, for example, lists certification, customer details and an export meter photograph. Requirements vary; do not treat another supplier's checklist as interchangeable.
Normally your installer handles the appropriate network process. Connection requirements depend on the equipment and installation: some routes require approval before connection, while others use notification. Your installer must confirm the correct route and any export limit. A paid tariff never overrides a DNO limit, and you should not change inverter settings to increase export yourself.
No MCS certificate? Ask the installer for it first. Equivalent certification and some supplier-specific alternative assessment routes may be accepted, but access is not universal. Confirm eligibility directly rather than assuming you cannot be paid—or that every supplier must accept the installation.
What is an export MPAN, and do I need another meter?
An MPAN identifies an electricity connection point for registration and settlement. The export MPAN is separate from the import MPAN on your normal electricity bill. It is not the meter serial number or the number of panels.
A suitable smart meter can usually record both directions, so a separate export MPAN does not necessarily mean another physical meter. The meter must meet the tariff's requirements and be capable of half-hourly export measurement. The supplier also needs the readings required to calculate payments.
Octopus describes requesting a new export MPAN from the DNO after receiving an application. Its published guide gives one to four weeks for that DNO stage; this is not a promise that every supplier's complete application will finish in that time. An existing export MPAN may instead be transferred.
If you need a meter appointment, start that conversation early. Ask whether your existing meter is suitable and communicating, rather than assuming “smart” means export is ready.
When do export payments start?
Ask for the eligible payment start date and opening export reading in writing. Installation day, application day, export MPAN creation, tariff activation and the first payment can all be different dates.
Octopus's export terms state that the tariff cannot begin until the export MPAN is created, transferred to it and export meter data is being received. The terms also say it will email the payment start date.
Will they backdate payments to installation day?
Do not assume that. There is no blanket promise in SEG guidance that every unit exported from commissioning will later be reimbursed. The supplier's terms, agreed start date, accepted application and available meter evidence matter.
If paperwork or metering is delayed, ask what period the supplier will cover and retain its answer. If a supplier has failed to honour an agreed date, that is a different issue from exporting before any paid arrangement was established. Keep evidence and ask for the account to be investigated.
Does payment appear as a bill credit?
Not always. Some arrangements credit an energy account; others pay separately. British Gas currently describes quarterly SEG payments, normally by bank transfer, within 28 days of receiving the export reading. No credit on your import bill does not by itself prove you are unpaid. Check the export statement, payment schedule and bank account too.
How much could a missed registration cost?
Use measured export—not total solar generation—to estimate the amount at stake:
Exported kWh × applicable export rate = potential export income.
For illustration, 500 kWh at 12p/kWh is £60. If that export occurred outside a payable agreement, recovery is not guaranteed. This is an arithmetic example, not a current tariff recommendation, a typical household forecast or a statement that £60 is legally owed.
Electricity used directly in your home can still reduce purchases while export registration is pending. Those bill savings are separate from export income. Do not interpret all generated electricity as saleable export.
My app shows export but I am receiving nothing. What should I check?
- Was an application submitted? Find the reference, not just the installation invoice.
- Has it been accepted? Check spam folders, requests for missing documents and the tariff start confirmation.
- Is the export MPAN registered to the right supplier? Ask the export team to confirm it.
- Are export readings available? Ask whether the smart meter is sending the required data or manual readings are needed.
- Is a payment actually due yet? Check the agreed cycle and where the money is paid.
- Are the units correct? The inverter app estimates flows; the supplier calculates payment from the accepted export meter data. These figures may differ.
- Are account details correct? Check the named recipient and any bank verification requirements.
If the meter shows export but the account has no paid tariff, contact the supplier's export or SEG team. If the installer has not supplied promised certificates or network evidence, contact the installer separately. Find the missing stage rather than sending the same query endlessly between both parties.
Ask for a written explanation and raise a formal complaint if a confirmed entitlement or agreed setup has not been honoured. Ofgem explains the complaints route: the Energy Ombudsman may be available after eight weeks or a deadlock letter, subject to its remit. Keep application dates, readings, messages and statements.
What if I have a battery, an old FIT account or change supplier?
A battery can store solar electricity, but a battery charged overnight from the grid adds another consideration. Do not assume a tariff pays for grid-charged battery export. Ask the supplier about its treatment and check any battery-control programme conditions.
You cannot receive FIT export and SEG payments for the same export simultaneously. Existing FIT generation payments are a separate matter; seek advice before changing an established arrangement.
Changing import supplier does not guarantee your preferred export tariff follows you or keeps the same rate. Check any linked-import eligibility. Moving into a house with panels also does not establish that the previous owner's export agreement now pays you. Arrange the appropriate new account or ownership change and record a dated reading.
Your final check: six things to confirm
- I have the installation certificates and DNO evidence.
- I have applied for a suitable paid export tariff.
- My export MPAN and export account are confirmed.
- I know the payable start date, opening reading and rate.
- I know how readings and payments will be handled.
- I have checked the first paid kWh and amount.
Check both. A completed installation is the start of ownership, not proof that every payment arrangement is finished.