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Original poster

Forced to have smart meter

117 replies

Coatanger · 14/09/2024 08:36

morning,

i’m Constantly being bombarded by Scottish power about having a smart meter fitted. I’ve consistently said no thank you and now the letters have changed, telling me that my meters are out of date and need changing.

is anyone else experiencing this?I feel like it’s just a ploy to fit a smart meter!

my gas meter was actually checked fairly recently with no concerns raised!

can I just keep saying no or will they escalate it?

OP posts:

Dippydinosaurus · 14/09/2024 10:38

Octopus are really good. We don't get badgered and their tariffs are available to us without a smart meter. We have solar panels and rent. So while you can now have smart meters with solar panels (according to the salesman in the street trying to do the hard sell!) we can't as our landlord has said no - they receive the money for electricity fed back in not us and it won't work. Not sure what will happen in a few years whether good tariffs will still be available for us

dementedpixie · 14/09/2024 10:39

FairyMeriy · 14/09/2024 09:59

How bizarre so many people are against a smart meter. All it is, is something that sits in our kitchen and rather than having to go out to get a reading for the gas and electricity, it does it for us. We can see how much we’re using. It’s really not as sinister as you’re making it out…

That's not the smart meter. That's the in home display thing.

henlake7 · 14/09/2024 10:42

Ive got nothing againest them...Im just waiting for all the kinks to be worked out before I swap!
You still seem to be hearing too many stories of people being charged ridiculous amounts by mistake and I had a similar situation with BG a few years ago which caused me so much stress I really dont want to chance it again!
Thankfully Octopus dont seem to be pushy though as they never mention it.

My general rule of thumb with these kinds of situations though is to wait it out....if it gets to the point something is a legal requirement then they will let you know. legally!

TonTonMacoute · 14/09/2024 10:44

Coatanger · 14/09/2024 09:10

Our good friend actually works for one of the big energy companies. He has advised us to avoid having one as he’s seen some real nightmare scenarios with inaccurate bills

DH worked on a big smart meter project with an energy company, he says the same thing - as did his boss.

Its nothing to with being spied on but you would be open to 'rationing' and other forms of control.

The energy companies are under pressure from the government to install them but you don't have to have one if you don't want - at the moment anyway.

FairyMeriy · 14/09/2024 10:49

dementedpixie · 14/09/2024 10:39

That's not the smart meter. That's the in home display thing.

Show quote history

That’s our smart meter. It sends them details, the same as what we see on the display.

allthemiddlechildrenoftheworld · 14/09/2024 10:51

@Coatanger I would never have one!! my sis in law has one in a holiday house and she was being billed 40 pounds a week when everything was off! the only thing going round at the rate of knots was the smart meter!!

Arafon · 14/09/2024 10:51

There does seem to be a lot of 'computer says no' with them

UrsulaBelle · 14/09/2024 10:58

I reluctantly swapped to smart meters to get a good fixed rate. It’s been a disaster. The gas meter quickly stopped transmitting so I had to manually read it. Then it stopped working completely and it took Eon 6 months to replace it. Of course they estimated the 6 months and over estimated by about double. I complained, they eventually refunded about 2 months worth. OK, I could accept that. Then they recharged me for one of the 2 months. Gah!

The old meters were about 30 years old but had been completely reliable. Mechanical so no worries not being able to read them.

suburburban · 14/09/2024 11:00

We've had that too

I ignore it

It ain't broke mantra

CrunchyCarrot · 14/09/2024 16:17

Anisty · 14/09/2024 10:24

I don't understand this resistance to smart meters at all! I love my meters so much that, when the ones i had installed by EDF broke, i moved to Octopus as it was the only way of getting new ones!!

I really don't know how anyone budgets without them. They show your cost in real time. The meters showed us that our 'luxury' powerful hot showers cost twice as much as less powered but absolutely fine showers.

And, in winter, it prompts us to put the heating off a couple of hours before going to bed. Prev we put it off when we went to bed. But the house stays warm easily for 2 hours post switch off.

You can set a daily budget and know what your spend is. No surprise bills. Brilliant!

I don't understand this because we have a direct debit set up and that is a regular monthly payment of the same amount each month of the year. After awhile if the amount they have goes too far into credit or debit they'll let us know by email that the DD is being adjusted either upwards or downwards.

We have our central heating on a thermostat and have set the upper limit we want for the time of day, so it is set for a lower temperature at night. We can also regulate each room's temperature via the thermostat on radiators. No shower here but it's fairly obvious a power shower will cost you far more than a regular one.

We're with Octopus, too.

shuffleofftobuffalo · 14/09/2024 16:29

Energy companies are under huge pressure from the govt just now to install smart meters, so they'll try anything bar literally forcibly visiting and changing it.

You don't have to have one if you don't want one, just ignore the letters/comms. No need to engage with them. They can't make you do anything and they can't force one on you.

By the way if you or anyone have an economy 7 meter do get it changed to a smart ASAP - Google radio teleswitch to see why. Your meter genuinely will be obsolete in the not too distant future and you won't like the outcome (and no, it's not your energy company's fault....)

CeeJay81 · 14/09/2024 16:33

I've had a smart meter for a couple of years. No problems with it at all. Pay monthly and have an online account. I can see how much I've used/cost when they take the readings on 9th of the month.

Jagshamesh · 14/09/2024 16:42

If you love a smart meter then good for you but OP doesnt want one so politely please foxtrot oscar.

OP, apparently gas meters do not have an expiry date as such, but electric meters do. That said if you ignore them then Im yet to hear of anyone have their electric cut off.

citizens advice is a good site, with a section on Refusing a smart meter
Getting a smart meter installed - Citizens Advice

And you can cross reference your elec meter here and see what the certification date is, but if you're getting hassled then assume they have got it right.
Schedule 4: UK nationally approved electricity meters (publishing.service.gov.uk)

Getting a smart meter installed

What smart meters are, when you can get one installed, whether you can refuse a smart meter, smart meter specifications and how to save money with a smart meter

https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/consumer/energy/energy-supply/your-energy-meter/getting-a-smart-meter-installed/

mrsconradfisher · 14/09/2024 16:44

Absolutely no way I am getting a smart meter. We have a 4 bed detached house (new build about 16 years ago), our DD with EDF is £102 a month. Our neighbour in the exact same house with the same number of children has a smart meter with EDF. Her DD is over £250 a month. Now I appreciate she maybe using slightly more gas/electricity but not more than double.
The other issue is elderly people. My 85 year old Dad is being hounded to have one, he has no internet (and has no use for it) yet they won’t give up. For him to have one it would mean getting internet as well which is more money to pay.

Jagshamesh · 14/09/2024 16:45

@mrsconradfisher you dont need the internet for a smart meter.

Cynic17 · 14/09/2024 16:45

I've had this for years. I just throw the letters in the bin. Nobody has turned up to fit a smart meter and, if they did, I either wouldn't answer the door or wouldn't let them in. They can't force me, and the more fuss they make then the more determined I become.

mrsconradfisher · 14/09/2024 16:50

Jagshamesh · 14/09/2024 16:45

@mrsconradfisher you dont need the internet for a smart meter.

Really? How on earth do the readings get transmitted then? I assumed that having an internet connection was vital.

Cynic17 · 14/09/2024 16:52

Anisty · 14/09/2024 10:24

I don't understand this resistance to smart meters at all! I love my meters so much that, when the ones i had installed by EDF broke, i moved to Octopus as it was the only way of getting new ones!!

And, in winter, it prompts us to put the heating off a couple of hours before going to bed. Prev we put it off when we went to bed. But the house stays warm easily for 2 hours post switch off.

You can set a daily budget and know what your spend is. No surprise bills. Brilliant!

I don't want or need a daily budget. I use the power I need for the things I want to do. Having a box that shows me what I use wouldn't change anything at all.
If I was worried about bills, then I am perfectly capable of switching off stuff to reduce consumption - I don't need a box to tell me.
But if the companies are so keen, then there's obviously a catch. Not to mention the whole "nanny state" mentality of the whole process.

Jagshamesh · 14/09/2024 16:55

mrsconradfisher · 14/09/2024 16:50

Really? How on earth do the readings get transmitted then? I assumed that having an internet connection was vital.

Show quote history

They use a different network. Its not the internet or mobile phones but something similar.

Notreat · 14/09/2024 16:57

What's the problem with a smart meter. We have had one for several years and we have never had any issues. We had some previously though when our bill was always estimated, we always ended up paying too little or too much!

twomanyfrogsinabox · 14/09/2024 16:58

The intention is to charge more for peak times, phrased as reduced rates for off peak. I suspect it will become only the more well off will be able to afford a cooked breakfast at breakfast time or a cooked dinner at dinner time.

HowYouSpellingThat10 · 14/09/2024 16:59

Are you in Scotland? If you are in the north you can say you'll have one but you won't see it.

I wanted one (solar and can't export without) and it has taken two different suppliers, a complaint, escalated complaints and compensation before it was finally fitted two years later.

They don't have the engineers to put them in and those they do have are being diverted into electric car charging points.

INeedAnotherName · 14/09/2024 17:04

No, they cannot force you. I've seen/read too many horror stories so I won't be having one either.

This article is dated 29th August 2024.
https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/utilities/can-i-be-forced-to-have-a-smart-meter/

Autumn1990 · 14/09/2024 17:05

I have a smart meter. Been fine I think for 2 years. Recently switched to British Gas. First couple of bills fine and then a huge bill. I think I’ve worked out where some of it came from but I have 500 units of electricity that I don’t think we used.
Have had random big bills before but we were using an ashp (not anymore) so I previously assumed it was that as it’s not fitted correctly. Not so sure now and British Gas charge a large call out fee if the smart meter is found to be working fine.
If possible I would avoid smart meters

Jagshamesh · 14/09/2024 17:08

INeedAnotherName · 14/09/2024 17:04

No, they cannot force you. I've seen/read too many horror stories so I won't be having one either.

This article is dated 29th August 2024.
https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/utilities/can-i-be-forced-to-have-a-smart-meter/

The problem with the article is it implies they CAN force you if your meter is at the end of its life, which is what the companies are using now to make you switch. Eon contacted us when our meter was 19 years and 6 months old as it has an expiry date of 20 years. Of course it wont self destruct at age 20 but its out of certification and as yet nobody knows if they can force you to have a new one fitted.

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