Why Don't More UK Car Parks Have Solar Panels? (2026)
Few UK car parks carry solar. The blockers are cost, grid, ownership and use, not sunshine. A ranked list, plus the May 2026 decision.
The short answer
Most UK car parks have no solar because a canopy is a construction project, not an add-on. It needs a steel structure and foundations, a grid connection, planning consent and an owner willing to commit capital for the life of the asset. None of that depends on how much sun the car park gets. PVGIS puts a south-facing canopy at a 10° tilt at about 920 kWh per kWp a year in London and about 772 in Glasgow (the full table is in the design guide). Sunshine is not what holds schemes back.
The government considered forcing the issue. On 21 May 2026 it said it would not take the solar-canopy policy any further at this point; the mandate update has the detail. This guide covers the barriers that remain.
The barriers, ranked by how often they decide a scheme
| Barrier | What decides it | Where to check |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Ownership and lease | Does the occupier own the car park, or hold a lease at least as long as the asset's useful life? Who can claim the tax relief? | Seven-point screen |
| 2. Daytime demand | Is electricity used while the sun is up? Self-consumed units are worth more than exported ones. | Seven-point screen |
| 3. Grid connection | Above 16 A per phase it is a G99 application. The offer can carry a cost, a curtailment condition or a queue position. | G99 application guide |
| 4. Structure and ground | Made ground, a high water table and buried services change foundations and the column grid. | Ground and structure |
| 5. Planning | In England, Class OA permitted development with prior approval; limits on height and distance to dwellings. | Class OA in brief |
| 6. Capital cost | Structure and foundations sit on top of the panels and inverters, so a canopy costs more per kWp than a roof array. | Cost guide |
Grid: a car park array is almost always a G99 job
Up to 16 A per phase (3.68 kW per phase, about 11 kW on three phases) can be connected under the G98 connect-and-notify route. Above that it is a G99 application, and the network operator must approve it before the system connects. At roughly 1.5 kWp per bay, the figure this site's guides use, eight bays already pass 11 kW, so almost every car park scheme needs the G99 route. The operator's answer can add cost, limit export or put the project in a queue, which is why it belongs near the start of any appraisal, not the end.
Planning: England has a route, with limits
In England, a solar canopy over an existing non-domestic off-street car park can be permitted development under Class OA. The canopy must not exceed 4 metres, must not be within 10 metres of the curtilage of a dwellinghouse or block of flats, and needs a prior-approval determination from the local planning authority on siting, design and appearance, including glare. Listed-building curtilages and scheduled monuments are excluded. The conditions are set out in Class OA in brief. Elsewhere in the UK, ask the local planning authority what applies.
Use pattern: who is on site while the sun is up?
A car park serving a weekday daytime load self-consumes most of what the canopy generates, which is worth more than exporting it. A car park that is busy in the evening or at weekends exports more, and exported units earn the Smart Export Guarantee rate your supplier offers. SEG licensees must offer an export tariff above 0p to eligible generators up to 5 MW, and the better fixed rates found on comparison sites in early October 2026 were around 12–13p per kWh (indicative, and mostly domestic listings, so commercial offers can differ). The same canopy can have very different economics on two sites a mile apart.
The barriers that are not barriers
Two things people expect to block a scheme actually help it. The £1m Annual Investment Allowance usually gives 100% relief in year one for a business under the limit, and full expensing does not cover solar, so planning around the allowance matters: capital allowances on a solar carport. And in England, on-site renewable generation plant and storage is exempt from business-rates valuation from 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2035: business rates on a solar carport.
A decision order for a car park manager
- Screen the site against the seven-point test.
- Check the ground and structure before pricing.
- Ask the network operator for a G99 view.
- Confirm the planning route with the local planning authority.
- Price the scheme using the cost guide and compare funding routes (PPA, asset finance or capital purchase).
- Read the car park solar panels guide for specification.
Frequently asked questions
Why don't car parks have solar panels?
Are solar car parks available in the UK?
Why don't they put solar panels over car parks?
Do you need planning permission for a solar carport?
Is a solar carport mandatory in the UK?
Sources and last checked
Last checked 20 October 2026.
- gov.uk: Solar on car parks and electric vehicle charging, call for evidence and outcome (21 May 2026)
- legislation.gov.uk: GPDO 2015 Schedule 2 Part 14 Class OA
- gov.uk: Annual Investment Allowance
- gov.uk: Check if you can claim full expensing or 50% first-year allowances
- PVGIS v5.3 (SARAH3), European Commission JRC, run 20 October 2026
- Ofgem: Smart Export Guarantee
- Energy Networks Association, Engineering Recommendations G98 and G99 (thresholds as summarised in NIE Networks guidance)
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Related reading: EV canopy costs and design · commercial solar carports · why full expensing does not cover solar.
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