Smart Meters - Downsides?

[LovingLifesHurdles]

I'm considering having a smart meter installed. Are there any down sides of having one?

I’ve had mine for a year and there have been zero downsides so far.

Ours keeps not working

It used to be if you switched provider it then went back to be non-smart. People have had issues with then interfering with WiFi or broadband/TV so worth googljng what those issues were.

My mum has it and it keeps malfunctioning, so very annoying and then they say sent the readins manually which defeats the purpose and guess what, we can easily see the electric readings but the gas is covered so we can't even see it!
They keep coming to fix it but it never solves the issue.
So we're in the process of trying to remove the smart meter, nothing but trouble for us.
But my sister also has it and seems fine, so dunno

Okay, this is probably just conspiracy theory stuff. But, when the electric company wanted recently to turn off my electricity they needed to come onto my property to do it. If I had a smart meter they could restrict supply whenever they wanted to.

We’ve been considering this and decided against it. Mainly because we’ve heard anecdotal problems from a few people. Mainly in relation to WiFi issues.

Why would they do that though if you're paying your bills?

I’ve not heard of people having WiFi issues. Mine is literally next to my router, I wfh and am on video calls and I’ve not had any problems myself either.

I've had them for years, in two different houses, with no problems at all. Quite the opposite in fact, I no longer have to move cupboards full of stuff at short notice so my meter can be read. And my bills are always accurate, not estimated.

I'm fairly sure that they don't work via your router - mine definitely doesn't - I think they have a SIM card in which connects to 3 or 4G.

I've had them for years, in two different houses, with no problems at all. Quite the opposite in fact, I no longer have to move cupboards full of stuff at short notice so my meter can be read. And my bills are always accurate, not estimated.

same here

The main box for my smart meter is in the same place as it was before I switched - outside, in the side porch. I don't remember them putting anything inside particularly, bar the display unit, which can be unplugged if we want to.

Some models of smart meter have their own dedicated router which is usually located on the same board as the meters themselves. The meters report to the router, and it's not uncommon for people to stack the cupboard full of household items, block the signal from router to meter, then throw a fit because their smart meter 'isn't working' when that's entirely of their own doing.

No issues here, the only downside is that they couldn't install one on my gas meter due to it being too far away (I don't live in anything close to a mansion!). It's great, saves delving around in the cupboard of the doom under the stairs to submit a meter reading.

I love mine. I can see how much a shower or load of washing costs and have a fairly accurate idea of what my bill will be. Last winter when it was going over £5 a day I turned the heating off

Are you suggesting large multinational companies would want everyone to have a device where they could turn your electric off easily?

They want everyone on them. They also keep talking about restricting service to save the supply.

I think you'd be naïve to facilitate that kind of power.

Can’t think of any they only thing which isn’t a bad thing is it’s shown me how disgustingly wasteful I’ve been with energy and money

decreased usage massively no great hardship make sure dishwasher/washer full using smaller double oven only boiling what water need in kettle lights off
looking at weather forecast for doing washing and hanging it out switch everything off instead of standby turned temp down and hot water on combi boiler

should of done this before but until you can physically see it displayed you don’t realise how much u waste

We have a smart meter and by giving us real time information we have made better, more efficient, and more informed decisions. It has helped us save over £200 over the last year. However, I did have some concerns around privacy and initially I did check a little obsessively.

I have one. Although it's good to use the app and see the usage..the device meant to monitor in the home isn't working. Number of calls to provider, they won't give a new one.

Secondly, when the last rate rise happened, I thought, fine, I have a smart meter so don't need to submit a reading. When I eventually got a bill I realised that they still estimated usage on what I used before the rate rise(at least 2 months). This was in the energy favour and estimated that 95% of the units used was after the rate change! I know as I took a note of the meter just in case. Took me about 4/5 calls to sort out and get a new bill with the correct meter readings!

This time round I didn't want it happening again so phoned up saying I wanted a bill taken now(yesterday this was). But they said that as I have a smart meter they won't generate a bill now and I have to wait for it to come when it's due! I will see if they try and estimate it again! So, for this reason I wish I was able to just go on a app, give my reading and get a bill! Gone are the days of easy bill generation with smart meter!

We have our meter in the kitchen, in a cupboard. There is no mobile phone signal in that corner of the kitchen. I have said, every time they phone and suggest a smart meter, that they are welcome to install one but will also have to install a mobile signal booster as there is no signal. They think I am wasting their time, because we have the same conversation over 3-4 months, yet they will not install a signal booster.
Meanwhile I'm happy to pay their over estimated bills at the old rate....l'll tell them the current meter reading after I've paid the bill with the next estimate which will be in early November.

I haven’t got one but the main thing that puts me off is that they need a place to be and a plug socket.
My elderly mother had one fitted about a year ago. Her meter is in a cupboard under the stairs. The contractors who fitted it told her it would need to be checked. A year later, she still has all the contents of the cupboard in her dining room as no one has come back and checked it.
Most people do not need a meter to tell them if they put the tumble dryer on it will use lots of electricity and be very expensive.
It is not difficult to submit meter reading online.

there is also the possibility of pricing according to time of day so units cost more in the evenings and weekends so those you can do their laundry at 11am or 2pm get it cheaper than those you need to do it at 7am or 7pm or Saturday morning
there are data breaches all the time, DVLA passport banks and so I would not chose to share data with anyone I do not have to
Also I am perfectly capable of reading my own meter once a month and submitting it online

Isn't that just your IHD? Your meter is usually away in a cupboard?

Mine has never managed to send a reading to octopus and octopus have fitted a smart meter and nobody knows how to take a reading from it . 6 months in and it's still a mystery , despite a million emails

Given the massive incompetence I have previously experienced in energy billing, including threats of court action to recover thousands I supposedly owed (I didn't) there is no way I will be getting a smart meter that would allow remote disconnection.

Once you have a billing issue where the billing system is wrong for some reason, it can be very difficult to resolve. The automation is rigid.