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Anyone concerned about GivEnergy?

DREI · 2026-04-02T10:13:23Z

I’ve only just become aware of GivEnergy’s proposed move to put cloud/app access, automation/API usage, and potentially smart-tariff functionality behind a subscription based service. If implemented as described, I think this raises serious consumer-law questions. For most customers, these systems were sold not just as batteries, but as connected products with app access, remote control, historical data, and smart-tariff optimisation forming part of the value proposition. If those features are later put behind a paywall, the issue is not just inconvenience, it may materially reduce the value and functionality of hardware people have already purchased. I only selected GivEnergy because I wanted access to OIF. In my view, the key questions are: Were customers clearly told at the point of sale that these features could later become chargeable? Were any such terms fair and transparent? Is it reasonable to charge extra for access to functions that many people would consider part of the original product? What happens to access to smart tariffs and optimisation if customers do not pay? I’m interested in hearing from other GivEnergy owners, especially anyone who still has original sales material, installer emails, brochures, screenshots, or T&Cs referring to app access, cloud control, API access, or tariff compatibility. If enough of us are affected, it may be worth taking specialist consumer-law advice and approaching this collectively. P.S. I am wondering if this is a last effort of generating revenue, before going into administration. I've also checked and GivEnergy has previously described its monitoring portal in marketing materials and documentation as "free forever," promising users "unparalleled data access," easy remote management, and continuous, free updates. and from the 2025 brochure:

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Judith

(@judith)

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Joined: 2 years ago

Posts: 519

19/04/2026 1:11 pm

@johndwyer surprisingly the Givenergy forum is still live but might shut down any time soon. But in the meantime you might get an answer from one of the software specialist users there.

https://community.givenergy.cloud

You could also try the Facebook page that Paul L frequents. He’s the dragon (ex of GE) and is now redundant but might advise still.

2kW + Growatt & 4kW +Sunnyboy PV on south-facing roof Solar thermal. 9.5kWh Givenergy battery with AC3. MVHR. Vaillant 7kW ASHP (very pleased with SCOP 4.7) open system operating on WC

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downfield

(@downfield)

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19/04/2026 2:25 pm

Posted by: @judith

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surprisingly the Givenergy forum is still live but might shut down any time soon

I have been in touch with the GE Software team about the forums and they have said that they are part of their business so provided they get enough support for their Premium service the forums will remain live.

Mitsubishi Zubadan 14kW with Mixergy 210l DHW in 220m2 barn property. 24 solar panels = 9kWp with GivEnergy 5.0kW Hybrid inverter and 19kWh GivE batteries. Jaga Strada fan-assisted rads throughout. Landvac vacuum glazing/triple glazed windows.

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KevH

(@kevh)

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19/04/2026 5:33 pm

@downfield And free, according to the exchange I had with them.

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JohnDwyer

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20/04/2026 4:12 pm

@judith Thankyou I'll try that.

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sonosppp

(@sonosppp)

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21/04/2026 3:53 pm

My Dad went full force into GivEnergy ecosystem and is feeling a bit burned. I helped him set up "local access" via a cloudflare tunnel and he's proper happy now. He does now wish he had gone with a Sigenergy system.

This post was modified 3 days ago by Mars

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Toodles

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21/04/2026 5:30 pm

Oh for a Crystal Ball and a polishing cloth… Toodles.

Toodles, heats his home with cold draughts and cooks food with magnets.

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Majordennisbloodnok

(@majordennisbloodnok)

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21/04/2026 9:52 pm

Posted by: @sonosppp

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….

I helped him set up "local access" via a cloudflare tunnel and he's proper happy now.

...

Cloudflared is my preferred method for remote access too. Good job.

105 m2 bungalow in South East England
Mitsubishi Ecodan 8.5 kW air source heat pump
18 x 360W solar panels
1 x 6 kW GroWatt battery and SPH5000 inverter
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"Semper in excretia; sumus solum profundum variat"

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KevH

(@kevh)

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21/04/2026 11:00 pm

@majordennisbloodnok Pardon my ignorance, but this means nothing to me.

Should it, I wonder?

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Majordennisbloodnok

(@majordennisbloodnok)

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22/04/2026 7:10 am

Posted by: @kevh

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@majordennisbloodnok Pardon my ignorance, but this means nothing to me.

Should it, I wonder?

Quite possibly not, @kevh.

Something that seems to be particularly important for a lot of GivEnergy customers is the ability to control their setup when away from home. This is a big plus for anything cloud-based, but Home Assistant - the preferred plan B for many - is purely locally hosted. There are several ways of making one’s local Home Assistant instance available over t’interweb and Cloudflare tunnels are one option. It so happens it’s my preferred one, too.

If you don’t have something local on your home network that you want to be able to access when you’re out of the house, this is all irrelevant for you. If that is, however, something you want to achieve, it’s a topic in itself and perhaps deserving of a thread of its own; just say if that’s the case.

"Semper in excretia; sumus solum profundum variat"

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leeshore

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22/04/2026 10:34 am

You can use the home assistant app to easily view your home assistant instance when you are away from home. You have to pay for using home assistant cloud but you are supporting the Home Assistant team. It work well.

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Majordennisbloodnok

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22/04/2026 11:29 am

Posted by: @leeshore

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You can use the home assistant app to easily view your home assistant instance when you are away from home. You have to pay for using home assistant cloud but you are supporting the Home Assistant team. It work well.

Yes-ish.

The Home Assistant companion app allows for an internal and an external address for your HA instance. If it can't connect to the internal instance (e.g. you're away from home) then it'll try the external address. Paying to use Nabu Casa's Home Assistant Cloud facility is one way of getting an external address but it's not the only one. Implementing a CloudFlare tunnel is another way and setting up a VPN between your phone and your own home is another. I've purposely ignored solutions like port forwarding since I wouldn't recommend them, but suffice to say there are several ways to achieve the same basic thing.

You are absolutely right, though, @leeshore, that if you do pay for Home Assistant Cloud then you're effectively donating back to the Home Assistant project overall. Current prices mean that's £65 per year which is not a huge amount especially if you use Home Assistant functionality extensively.

"Semper in excretia; sumus solum profundum variat"

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Mars

(@editor)

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Posts: 4512

22/04/2026 11:33 am

Posted by: @majordennisbloodnok

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If that is, however, something you want to achieve, it’s a topic in itself and perhaps deserving of a thread of its own; just say if that’s the case.

The Cloudflare tunnels sound very interesting and I think it definitely merits its own thread.

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