Smart Meter? No thanks I'll keep my dumb one.

Road_Hog

utility_csa wrote: »

Nope, still has to go via warrant.

It may do for now, but my point is correct, it will allow them to do it, without enetering the property. At the moment, they physically have to enter your property.

It does give you that extra breathing time if you hit hardship.

grahamc2003

utility_csa wrote: »

See 12 Billion... this is the part that perplexes me, lets say the suppliers change peoples meters to smart meters by 2019, the age where most meters will be coming close to the end of their 'certified life' how is the cost going to be that much more than traditional dumb meters, their isn't a great deal in cost any more. You don't see people moaning about the pure wastage of supplier carrying out PMCs years before they are due.

I will also agree I HATE the marketing of smart meters, for a large percentage having a smart meter is going to not effect how they use their energy at all, maybe for the first few months until the novelty has worn off.

Wind / Solar / CHP aren't a solution to 'demand', yes some of them are great but who is the real beneficiary of these? the people who currently have lovely incentives to, one example we recently installed the metering to someone's £100k barn roof crammed full of solar panels the barn was built for the sole purpose for FIT payments. :rotfl: Also these forms of generation are playing havoc on the DNOs networks which aren't really designed to be exporting.

Build more nuclear in my opinion.:D

The £12bn is made up of £4.5bn for the actual meters (seems stupid, doesn't it?), £1.5bn for installatioon, the new comms company plus comms, £2.5bn and £0.5bn software costs and the rest unspecified (well it's only a couple of billion!), all present day costs.

The savings are expected to be £16bn up to 2020 - so hey presto! the UK is better off by £4bn, all by giving people a display which shows their realtime usage and costs, so, as the theory goes, they'll alter their consumption to the tune of saving £16bn worth of electriticity. Well I'll save zero, because there are no savings to be made in my house, like millions of others. I think that those who haven't optimised their electricity usage by now never will, whatever graphs and realtime data they don't understand you throw at them. Certainly not £16bn worth anyhow.

So that is more or less the official published cost/benefit and justification. In reality, in my personal view, the very quick rollout without the demand control system, is purely to enable controlled rationing of electricity (i.e. power cuts at individual level) in the coming several years as our Nukes reach the end of their lives, which will be much better than uncontrolled rationing (i.e. power cuts at area level).

iglimpse

Well. Mine was fitted last weekend by BGas.

I have finally managed to get my kids to not leave the 50inch tv on standby, the simple light buttons make it very obvious :j

My only query is, if I want to change provider in a few months, is this still possible now that they have installed this kit. Guessing that I can but need to make sure :cool:

daffodil

Do some research regarding health problems in the USA as a result of having smart meters.

[Deleted User]

iglimpse wrote: »

Well. Mine was fitted last weekend by BGas.

I have finally managed to get my kids to not leave the 50inch tv on standby, the simple light buttons make it very obvious :j

My only query is, if I want to change provider in a few months, is this still possible now that they have installed this kit. Guessing that I can but need to make sure :cool:

Sorry, if you switch supplier you will lose the smart meter capability, and it will revert to being a normal or "dumb" meter,
Eurobird-, as for energy theft being of little consequence, you dont have enough knowledge to even make any comments on the subject. Its got to the stage, like in my hometown of Doncaster, where FOUR sizeable cannabis farms where found this year within 150 yards of each other in the Hexthorpe area (Hexthorpe rd to be exact ) all using vast ammounts of free electric, all feeding our kids and youth with home grown drugs. These are just the ones uncovered, along with very large numbers of gas and electric bypasses in these streets also. The home grown cannabis market can only survive in this country by using bypassed meters.There is a street in nearby Edlington, ****** Crescent, where approx 15% of the residents who are on British Gas, have been caught bypassing both electric and gas. These are just by people who slipped up by opening the doors to meter readers, as most in these sorts of streets dont open the doors at any time to anyone knocking. I dont think its possible to measure the loss to the Grid of thieved energy, Brit Gas have no idea and are not that bothered mainly because when I uncover a long term electric fiddle, they have to repay all the money they cant extract from the thief (this will be little or zero ), back to the grid. so they have now this year started to actively discourage us from finding electric bypasses. They are keen on Gas though because they would be out of pocket being big producers. One thing is for sure tho, that the numbers of people who refuse a smart meter for their own reasons, professional refuseniks, oddballs and weird beards etc will be incredibly small and of no consequence at all into the smart meter programme

Eurobird

@ sacsquacco

sacsquacco wrote: »

Eurobird-, as for energy theft being of little consequence, you dont have enough knowledge to even make any comments on the subject.

Exactly; that is why I asked: "Now if someone is able to give me a reliable estimate of the quantity of 'stolen' electricity, preferable with a verifiable reference, I would be most grateful."

Whilst your comments made interesting reading, based on anecdotal evidence of what you have seen in your locality, there are still no substantive figures.

Please, facts, not fiction or wishful thinking; back up your argument with verifiable data, presented in a clear and logical manner.

sacsquacco wrote: »

One thing is for sure tho, that the numbers of people who refuse a smart meter for their own reasons, professional refuseniks, oddballs and weird beards etc will be incredibly small and of no consequence at all into the smart meter programme

I could say the same of you here, if I may quote you: "you dont have enough knowledge to even make any comments on the subject."

Obviously though, I don't mean knowledge per se, as that would imply I was perhaps questioning your knowledge in general.

I find it strange you choose such terms for the people you envisage not wishing to have a smart meter. Is this indicative of stereotyping perhaps. What category have you firmly placed me in I wonder.


Best Regards, Eurobird.

[Deleted User]

All my comments are based on actual face to face visits on all Brit Gas customers who ve had smarts meters installed over the last 3 years and I can only remember one oddball who s objected, and he was one of those "hermit " types who house was a fortress. Every body cant give a monkeys what sort of meters installed. British Gas fitters have just been turning up and fitting them to people who have no idea what sort of meter s going in.They are just replacing the old "dial " etc. meters with them. I have asked many people what they think of them ( after the BBC asked me to do a bit of research for them for a forthcoming prog ) and I can tell you that most people disconnect the monitor within a few days and take little notice of the energy saving benefits. I reckon you d be in the "refusenik " category Eurobird, I suppose one of your main objection would be wi-fi signals passing through your brain as it competes with your wi-fi laptop and mobile. Its totally ridiculous and parnoid to suggest that there would be any problems about "someone " knowing what time you put the kettle on or turn your bedroom light off. The only people who should really object to them is us meter readers as its our jobs dissapearing fast, as they are doing now.
There will be no data available or anyone who can furnish any figures whatsoever about energy theft, and these examples I quoted are not anecdotal, thats why I gave exact place names. The cannabis farms are reported in the local Doncaster Free Press

Eurobird

@ sacsquacco

An "enlightening" reply, thank you.

Your employment may be more secure than you yourself imagine it to be.

But that, of course, is pure supposition upon my part.

A "refusenik" you say, hey that's made my day :T

anecdote
n 1: short account of an incident.


Best Regards - Eurobird

Inspectorman

Some interesting comments from both sides for a change - not many tin hats in here unlike the recent EDF are spying on me thread :rotfl:

Theft does go on and it is a problem for everyone - DNOs are now upping their game in the revenue protection area. There's also the safety factor - your electric bill might not go up much because of theft but i'm sure you'd be annoyed if your house became collateral damage in a fire caused by a bypass. Maybe one of the more office based utility people on here can provide some figures for theft - I'm a mere meter installer and know nothing except for what I see

As mentioned before, I like the smart meters having seen them in action so I'll be accepting mine

A far greater solution for me would be to install / move all meters outside and make them accesible - this would generate work for builders, electricians, meter fixers and meter readers. Plus everyones meter would get read - no more estimates, accurate bills.... :j