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Original poster

Smart meters - good or bad?

127 replies

Allthenameshavegone1972 · 09/01/2025 17:32

What are your opinions on Smart Meters? I read of so many disadvantages that I really don't trust them. I read my meter myself & submit the readings monthly, in time for the bill to be generated.
I've been contacted today by Octopus Energy to change my meter as the RTS is being phased out. If I don't then my supply will be affected. This makes me so effing angry. We're being blackmailed into having a smart meter when we don't want one. 😡

OP posts:
AnathemaPulsifer · 09/01/2025 17:35

They’re advertising that 4/5 people are happy with their smart meter, like that’s a good thing. That means 20% of people aren’t happy!

Personally I’m very happy with mine, haven’t had any issues.

peppermintgreengrass · 09/01/2025 17:39

They’re totally fine. But you’ll get a lot of paranoid weirdos coming along to claim otherwise.

LoafofSellotape · 09/01/2025 17:39

We swapped about 6 months ago, also with octopus. Very happy not to go onto the garage and read the meter now. I didn't bother with the tracker that shows what you're using , that went straight into a drawer .

Original poster
Allthenameshavegone1972 · 09/01/2025 17:41

@peppermintgreengrass I'm probably one of those weirdos who doesn't trust them

OP posts:
Nourishinghandcream · 09/01/2025 17:50

Fine.👍
My late parents were some of the first to have one when originally rolled out, has been upgraded a couple of times but it was a godsend meaning there was no need to get under the stairs to read the meters.
We had one fitted in our old house about 8yrs ago and again in our new house, both without any issues.

Elphame · 09/01/2025 17:53

My parents made the mistake of having Octopus fit a smart meter. It didn't work properly despite engineer visits and Octopus then tried to charge them £3000 for 8 months gas for a small 2 bed bungalow with excellent insulation.

They agreed a compromise figure but I am convinced my parents paid them far too much.

I will not have one in either of our properties.

CasperGutman · 09/01/2025 17:54

They've been fine for us, in three properties now. No need to submit readings, it all just looks after itself (yes, I do check every once in a while, and keep an eye on usage to be sure it makes sense). We don't bother with the in-home display, as it was just annoying and one more thing to dust!

You hear the occasional horror story, but there can be defects in non-smart meters just the same.

cardibach · 09/01/2025 17:56

Elphame · 09/01/2025 17:53

My parents made the mistake of having Octopus fit a smart meter. It didn't work properly despite engineer visits and Octopus then tried to charge them £3000 for 8 months gas for a small 2 bed bungalow with excellent insulation.

They agreed a compromise figure but I am convinced my parents paid them far too much.

I will not have one in either of our properties.

This is preventable by checking what they say you’ve used with the meter. If it’s an estimate, query why.

sanityisamyth · 09/01/2025 17:57

I like mine. Helps me figure out when we're using a lot of electricity.

GasPanic · 09/01/2025 18:01

In principle they are great.

In practice they don't always work well and resolving the issues with them can be a pain.

See the Panorama program on iPlayer.

These are real issues, rather than the tfh "the controller will monitor me and take over my brain" type rot that you get on the internet.

DaphneduM · 09/01/2025 18:03

We had a smart meter fitted about a year ago. It's all done automatically, no need to go outside and read the meter, the readings go direct. It's so easy to keep track of usage too. Really great. We were originally sceptical, but it's all good.

Flippinec · 09/01/2025 18:04

The problem is that the government has set targets about how many smart meters have to be implemented by the industry, but there is no legal mandate for anyone to accept them. And people are suspicious as to why they are being used. And smart meters have been quite unreliable in recent years.

The government want them rolled out so that there is more data on energy usage minute by minute which is essential to be able to work out how much energy the UK is using and when, to enable an efficient green energy transition as you can't just turn on and off solar or wind power when people need it, in the same way you can with a gas power plant. They also enable energy companies to provide better rates to customers who use energy when it is cheaper (eg early hours of the morning) rather than at peak times when National Grid are having to buy more energy in from wider sources to meet demand. The more demand, the higher the price they have to pay.

It really isn't about them wanting to spy on you for no good reason.

Elphame · 09/01/2025 18:05

cardibach · 09/01/2025 17:56

This is preventable by checking what they say you’ve used with the meter. If it’s an estimate, query why.

Show quote history

The meter wasn't reading any gas consumption at all so it wasn't possible to even take a manual reading... Had that been possible, of course they would have done so.

My parents are elderly but still very much on the ball and were ringing Octopus constantly trying to get the meter repaired or replaced. They are keen to fit them, not anywhere near as keen to come out if there is a problem.

Cute pink Octopus toy though 🙄

Londonrach1 · 09/01/2025 18:07

We not having a good time with them on my street...my neighbour reported hers and was told they do gone wrong. Avoiding them now

Mousespace · 09/01/2025 18:09

We had one in our last place that had a completely inaccurate display (day rate at night, night rate in the day) it didn’t impact the bills, but the display didn’t give us any of these ‘benefits’ of noticing our usage or anything, the water heater at night would put us in the red on the display as soon as we woke up (when in reality it had cost pennies) so we unplugged. We complained, no one ever came to fix it. I don’t think that’s unusual, if something goes funny they don’t seem to mind or send someone.

Not doing meter readings is good though. In the new place we have to do our own readings as the gas is outside and down three flights. I’d get the smart meter to do automatic readings, but I don’t think I could ever not ignore the display now tbh.

SpookySpoon22 · 09/01/2025 18:10

Yeah, Octopus wouldn't fix our gas Smart meter for nearly a year until I involved the Energy Ombudsman. It just needed to be replaced as it stopped taking readings, so all our bills were estimated. Would never use Octopus again as a result - you always hear about their good customer service but I say otherwise!

BasilParsley · 09/01/2025 18:11

This from @Elphame above is the thing that stops me getting one.

"They are keen to fit them, not anywhere near as keen to come out if there is a problem."

DoneAndNotDusted · 09/01/2025 18:23

I'm another who had problems with smart meters. The gas one never worked properly; supplier kept saying it would be sorted out but it never was, so I had to read it every month. This went on for over 2 years. Finally I'd had enough, and now have non-smart meters for both gas and electricity. (That took a bit of doing, but I think they finally got fed up with my complaints!).

PointsSouth · 09/01/2025 18:24

Ours are great. Easy, efficient, informative.

Of course, they're spying on us and sending all our conversations to Russia and buying loads of stuff from China on Amazon and training our cats to attack us and invading our dreams.

But, you know, that's progress....

Sadcafe · 09/01/2025 18:26

When ours was first fitted I looked at it all the time, commenting on the cost of a load of washing for example, after a while, completely stopped looking at it, has done nothing to make me alter my energy use, only advantage is the bills are at least accurate
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Flippinec · 09/01/2025 18:27

It's not always the energy supplier's fault when they don't work. A company called the DCC is responsible for the transmission of the data from the meter to the suppliers and distribution network operators- in other words DCC is responsible for the telecommunication network that the meter operates on. That's what makes it harder to get them repaired/replaced. If it stops communicating, it might be because there's a fault on the network rather than with the meter itself. There were lots of issues with the meters themselves in the early days but less so now.

Vaxtable · 09/01/2025 18:29

There is nothing wrong with smart meters and I really don’t understand why people have issues. I have had a smart meters for years and years, absolutely no issues and no need to get on my knees to read the meter

DeliciousApples · 09/01/2025 18:34

I too don't want one.

Call me a conspiracy theorist but it would be easy for someone to press a button remotely to switch off my power and I don't like that idea!

It may not happen for many years, but it will happen.

MereDintofPandiculation · 09/01/2025 18:35

A smart meter can be changed to prepayment terms without any interaction with you. Not a problem if you trust your energy supplier never to make a cock-up.

A smart meter can be disconnected remotely. Again, not a problem if you trust your energy supplier never to make a cock-up.

ThirdStorm · 09/01/2025 18:36

DO IT!! I avoided smart meters for years. I liked reading my meters and submitting readings. I was in control and it works well. I had my electric one done last month and it’s brilliant. Mostly due to the octopus app. I’m addicted to the new visibility the octo mini gives me with my use. Gas due to be fitted tomorrow. I’ve had my first bill generated, all correct with me doing nothing.