Smart meters Gas and leccy.

[Profpointy]

Some people don't want a smart meter.

Is there any reason though?
That's the gas board's bit of kit so why should I care how their meter works?

 

[midlife]

Is there any reason though?

There are instances of false readings and the current smart meters are tied to a supplier so if you switch supplier you have to change the meter.

 

[Colin_P]

[QUOTE 5205441, member: 45"]I just ignore the letters. They can't force them on you, in the same way that they can't force water meters on you.[/QUOTE]

If you live in the South East which is classed as an area under water stress then you cannot refuse a water meter.

Not looking forward to the day they fit one here.

 

[swansonj]

There are instances of false readings and the current smart meters are tied to a supplier so if you switch supplier you have to change the meter.

No longer necessarily true. I got a smart meter from my previous supplier as soon as they were available, about two years ago I would guess. I switched suppliers late last year and the new supplier seamlessly took over the meter, no visit let alone change of meter needed.

 

[Brains]

You may not 'have' to have a smart meter.
But likewise the suppliers dont 'have' to have you as a customer.

Within a few years (as in 3-5 years) the suppliers will simply decline to service customers without smart meters.
This will be because they can not afford to. They will no longer have meter readers.
Whilst some suppliers may be prepared to keep going with your estimates sent in by post for a while, sooner or later this will no longer be possible.

 

[Brains]

If you live in the South East which is classed as an area under water stress then you cannot refuse a water meter.

Not looking forward to the day they fit one here.

Most of the urban South East has been done already.
The one advantage is they can read the meters in a road and if the road meter and if the individual house meters dont match, they know they have a leak!
Consiquently, leakage in London has dropped by a third in the last 5 years, which is about a resevoir full every couple of months.

 

[classic33]

You may not 'have' to have a smart meter.
Buy likewise the suppliers dont 'have' to have you as a customer.

Within a few years (as in 3-5 years) the suppliers will simply decline to service customers without smart meters.
This will be because they can not afford to. They will no longer have meter readers.
Whilst some suppliers may be prepared to keep going with your estimates sent in by post for a while, sooner or later this will no longer be possible.

Been a seperate, private company, doing the meter readings for eight years, round here.

You read the meters, marking the card they supplied, before leaving it in your window for them to read. Two trips to "read" the same meter.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

Not secure, not encrypted, amongst the other problems they present.

 

[slowmotion]

Most of the urban South East has been done already.
The one advantage is they can read the meters in a road and if the road meter and if the individual house meters dont match, they know they have a leak!
Consiquently, leakage in London has dropped by a third in the last 5 years, which is about a resevoir full every couple of months.

I'm in London and don't have or want a water meter. I put in my own water meter to see what our consumption is. Even with only three people in the household, our water bill would be far bigger with a meter.

 

[PaulSB]

You may not 'have' to have a smart meter.
Buy likewise the suppliers dont 'have' to have you as a customer.

Within a few years (as in 3-5 years) the suppliers will simply decline to service customers without smart meters.
This will be because they can not afford to. They will no longer have meter readers.
Whilst some suppliers may be prepared to keep going with your estimates sent in by post for a while, sooner or later this will no longer be possible.

I’m surprised to learn meter readers still exist. We haven’t seen one for years and submit our readings on line. Five minutes work a month.

To the OP just say No. ask yourself what the benefit is to you? I won’t be having one.

My son’s partner works for an energy supplier. Another son was saying he wanted to get one, she just shook her head and said “don’t” The conversation moved on and she didn’t get the chance to explain.

 

[rualexander]

I've had smart meters for over ten years now.
The remote display, with usage and costs was interesting enough but the power company never used the remote reading facility and just sent the meter reader round.
Then the gas meter started randomly reading high usage, it would clock up a month's worth of gas over a weekend when I was away and no gas was being used.
I turned the gas off at the main stop valve befor the meter and it still kept ticking over the units.
Power company refused to believe it could be faulty.
Eventually they agreed to send a guy out to check it but he couldn't explain it so just changed the meter for an old style mechanical one, which has been fine since.
I changed supplier after that.

This is the type of meter I had https://www.landisgyr.eu/product/landisgyr-libra-310-series-2/
If you have one like it, keep an eye on it's readings!

 

[GuyBoden]

Refuse and insist on waiting for the second generation of meters (SMETS2):

What are second generation smart meters & when are they available?

• Second Generation Smart Meters (SMETS2) will be available in 2018
• They are designed to address the shortcomings of the first generation meters that have led to criticism and concerns in the press.
• New meters will be much more reliable and offer a wealth of features to make them a more attractive option to householders across the UK.

What’s the difference between the old SMET1 meters & the new SMETS2 meters?

• The new ones are more accurate – SMETS2 meters will be able to provide more accurate readings, bringing an end to the ludicrously high bills some customers have been charged in the past due to inaccurate readings.

• No more problems when customers switch suppliers – SMETS1 smart meters often stopped working when householders switched suppliers because the technologies the suppliers used were incompatible and data couldn’t be shared. Landis+Gyr, the UK’s largest smart meter manufacturer, says that the SMETS2 meters will be able to cope when households change suppliers and retain functionality post-switch.

• SMETS2 meters have better connectivity – households in areas where there is poor mobile phone reception will no long suffer the connectivity issues they had with the first generation meters.

https://www.logic4training.co.uk/blog/smart-meters/second-generation-smart-meters/

 

[numbnuts]

Within a few years (as in 3-5 years) the suppliers will simply decline to service customers without smart meters.
This will be because they can not afford to. They will no longer have meter readers.
Whilst some suppliers may be prepared to keep going with your estimates sent in by post for a while, sooner or later this will no longer be possible.

Not all propertys can have a smart meter such as flats where the gas meter is outside and the electric meter is inside, for the meters to work the gas meter needs an electric supply normal taken from your electric meter, if it is too far away they are not fitted.