Warning for homeowners with rooftop solar in South Africa
South Africa’s official crime statistics show theft at residential premises is on the rise across the country, and one of the main targets for criminals in 2024 is rooftop solar panels.
In 2024, South African homeowners with rooftop solar systems are facing a growing threat: the theft of solar panels and their components.
Amid an ongoing energy crisis and economic challenges, criminals are targeting these valuable installations, leaving homeowners vulnerable to significant losses.
This rise in theft coincides with South Africa’s worsening crime rates. According to the latest crime statistics from the South African Police Service (SAPS), burglaries and theft at residential properties have been steadily increasing.
Between April and June 2024, 34,075 home burglaries were reported, equating to roughly 379 incidents each day.
These statistics reflect a worrying trend in property crime, with Gauteng accounting for the majority of the burglaries.
The surge in solar panel theft comes on the heels of South Africa’s load shedding crisis.
In 2023, the country endured one of its worst years of power cuts, with rolling blackouts becoming a daily disruption.
The state-owned power utility, Eskom, struggled with ageing infrastructure, corruption, and frequent breakdowns at coal-fired plants, which severely impacted electricity supply.
Frustrated homeowners turned to solar energy for independence, leading to a sharp rise in residential solar installations.
By the start of 2024, South Africa had imported R17.5 billion worth of solar panels. This surge in demand also created a lucrative opportunity for criminals.
Solar panels are not only valuable for their ability to generate electricity but also for the materials they are made of.
Rodney Taylor, managing director of Guardian Eye, previously highlighted that the components of solar panels—such as silver, aluminium, and copper—are highly valuable on the black market.
These materials have a high resale value, making solar panels a prime target for thieves.
The high demand for solar energy, coupled with rising electricity costs, has fueled the theft epidemic as criminals seek to cash in on the booming solar industry.
Criminals have become increasingly sophisticated in their methods of stealing solar panels. In some cases, they disable security systems or strike in remote areas where homes are less monitored.
In rural or suburban areas, thieves often work under the cover of darkness, using tools to detach panels from rooftops quickly and efficiently.
In some incidents, solar inverters and batteries—essential components for storing and converting solar energy—are also stolen, leaving homeowners with incomplete systems and costly replacements.
Recognising the severity of the problem, some manufacturers have developed creative solutions to deter theft.
An Eastern European solar panel manufacturer, for example, now produces panels that appear damaged on the surface, making them less attractive to thieves.
These panels are specifically designed for the South African market, where solar theft has become rampant.
Despite a temporary reprieve from load shedding in 2024, energy analysts predict that demand for solar will continue to grow as electricity tariffs rise.
Since 2007, Eskom’s tariffs have increased by 927%, with further hikes on the horizon.
Homeowners are expected to turn increasingly to solar energy not only as a solution to power outages but also as a way to save on skyrocketing electricity costs.
Unfortunately, this growing demand for solar installations will likely keep solar panel theft on the rise.
Homeowners can take several measures to protect their solar installations from theft. One of the most effective strategies is to install surveillance cameras and motion-sensor lighting around the property.
These systems can deter criminals and alert homeowners to suspicious activity. Another approach is to use tamper-resistant hardware for mounting solar panels, making it more difficult for thieves to remove them.
In addition, securing inverters and batteries in locked enclosures can help protect these high-value components.
Homeowners can also consider working with local security companies to integrate their solar systems into a broader home security plan.
By combining alarms, surveillance, and physical barriers like security gates or fencing, homeowners can create a more robust defence against theft.
For added peace of mind, some insurance policies now offer coverage specifically for solar equipment, providing financial protection in the event of theft.
Nationally, Gauteng accounts for most of the home burglaries across the nine provinces, with just under a quarter (21.4%) of home burglaries in South Africa taking place in the province.
This is unsurprising as it is the most populous province in South Africa and thus has a proportional amount of crime.
This is also seen with the Northern Cape, the most scarcely populated province in the country, and thus has the lowest number of reported burglaries (3.5%).
However, almost every province in South Africa is represented in the ‘top 10 worst areas’ list, and it is Mankweng in Limpopo (KZN) which has drawn the most cases of break-ins, followed by two KZN suburbs, Plessislaer and Inanda, in second and third.
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