Millions of Brits have a smart meter display in their home, which should allow them to track how much they’re spending on gas and electricity. But it turns out that many may not be working correctly
Millions now have smart meter displays in their homes, which should enable them to monitor how much they’re spending on our gas and electricity.
For many it provides reassurance and enables them to identify where they can cut costs on gas and electricity bills. We ought to be able to rely on the readings on our displays but this isn’t always the situation.
However, around four million smart meters may not be functioning properly, meaning they aren’t transmitting accurate information to suppliers as they should be. This leaves households potentially paying more than they ought to for energy as suppliers are left to estimate how much they are consuming. This comes after news that UK homes are taking steps not seen for two years amid Rachel Reeves tax rise fears.
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If energy companies don’t receive smart meter readings, they will calculate bills based on estimates. One indication something is amiss is if you’re unable to browse through the displays on the screen to see how much you’re consuming, reports Birmingham Mail.
With the current cost of living, it’s normal for people to want to monitor their bills and spending habits closely. Unexpected charges or bills which suddenly vary from month to month without warning may be another sign.
While smart meters don’t directly help UK households save money, they enable them to track their energy bills by reducing their consumption where applicable. It’s also a good method to keep up with its usage thanks to the real-time data. Smart meters are also provided and installed by the energy supplier at no extra cost, meaning that anyone can own one.
Energy giant Eon says: “Don’t worry, your meter is collecting the readings, it’s just not sending them automatically to us. Sometimes smart meters stop working correctly for a variety of reasons including losing connection to the network.”
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He added: “Depending on the issue, we’ll let you know whether it’s a simple fix you can do yourself or whether you need to get in touch. Here are the most likely reasons why the readings are not getting through to us.”
- You’re a new client from another supplier. When you join us, it can take some time for your meter connect
- You have an older version of meter (SMETS1). It means you won’t benefit from a smart meter for now, but might be able to in the future
- You’ve just purchased a new smart meter (it can take up to 6 weeks to get everything sorted)
- The network in your house or neighbourhood went down