smart meters, its all a con for energy companies to spy on us right? they still visit

spiro

It is the government driving the need for smart meter because they believe it will cut consumption but has already been said the energy savvy are already doing it, if the rest of the nation follows suit is anyones guess.

Energy debt - depending of the final design of the meters this will become a thing of the past, don't pay your bill on time the meter converts to PAYG.

In terms of national generation capacity, the Italian use of these meter is that you sign up to a tariff which has a maximum capacity (peak) and the higher the peak the more the elec costs. This allow then to plan the maximum generation they need for a given area. Exceed your peak and the meter cuts you off until you contact the supplier and request to go onto a higher peak tariff and which point they switch you back on.

misterbarlow

meters should be read annually at minimum, then its up to the supplier/DC if they want to call more often, ie quarterly, etc...

We have been told when we start installing smart meters they will all have to be asset tracked and scanned into the depot, and scanned into our vans, because compared to a normal meter of about £15, the smart and IHD etc will be worth over £100 each....

I have had to fit so many key meters at properties as we have finally got in to read them after several years and they have had crazy underestimates and not provided readings, and they have suddenly had bills for thousands, not hundreds...
One guy was having estimates for around 50 units every bill, and we hadn't got in there for over 3 years, and he did nothing about it... then we finally read it and he had a bill for £1500...

Norman_Castle

It is the government driving the need for smart meter because they believe it will cut consumption but has already been said the energy savvy are already doing it, if the rest of the nation follows suit is anyones guess.

I lent a plug in monitor to three people. All returned it unused. They all said it was too much trouble and if they wanted to use something electrical they would use it regardlessly (or ignorantly). I've bought and fitted low energy bulbs for people who are simply not interested in energy consumption but will complain the energy companies are ripping them off.
A lot of people will not want, use or understand smart meters. Anyone interested in cutting consumption will do so without them, but we are all being forced to pay for their introduction.

PollySouthend

silverwhistle wrote: »

PollySouthend wrote: »

Because you haven't come on here to start a discussion ["what do people think of...?"] but with a fixed opinion which you have continued over many, many posts.



They probably could, but as anyone who has had any dealing with data knows, you can build up from detail but you can't separate from aggregated data.



So what do you suggest as an alternative? Loads more investment in mostly redundant plant - the point I made earlier which you ignored? In those circumstances perhaps cutting off the profligate might be a good idea? I'd rather my local hospital had the power than households who could easily cut their consumption without critical problems.

I'll repeat; I'm not criticising you but your opinions, OK?

I posted a question. I have an opinion that has yet to be changed by anyone here. Still don't see why you need to be judgmental and rude about it.

Thanks yes they could, and could save billions in installation costs.

That's scaremongering talking about cutting off power to homes to give it to hospitals, that assumes all homes don't have a critical need for power!

PollySouthend

misterbarlow wrote: »

I have had to fit so many key meters at properties as we have finally got in to read them after several years and they have had crazy underestimates and not provided readings, and they have suddenly had bills for thousands, not hundreds...
One guy was having estimates for around 50 units every bill, and we hadn't got in there for over 3 years, and he did nothing about it... then we finally read it and he had a bill for £1500...

That guy is stupid and probably does not know how energy billing works.

Wail

misterbarlow wrote: »

meters should be read annually at minimum, then its up to the supplier/DC if they want to call more often, ie quarterly, etc...

We have been told when we start installing smart meters they will all have to be asset tracked and scanned into the depot, and scanned into our vans, because compared to a normal meter of about £15, the smart and IHD etc will be worth over £100 each....

I have had to fit so many key meters at properties as we have finally got in to read them after several years and they have had crazy underestimates and not provided readings, and they have suddenly had bills for thousands, not hundreds...
One guy was having estimates for around 50 units every bill, and we hadn't got in there for over 3 years, and he did nothing about it... then we finally read it and he had a bill for £1500...

£15!

They are worth a lot more than that.

They should be being asset tracked now. Think about it. These meters all belong to someone.

lstar337

PollySouthend wrote: »

I have an opinion that has yet to be changed by anyone here.

Nor will it be.

lstar337

PollySouthend wrote: »

That guy is stupid and probably does not know how energy billing works.

So instead of offering him any help, we simply label him stupid, and move on.

How enlightened you are.

Joyful

Norman Castle

You had a bad experience but when I have loaned out my Energy monitor people have reduced their consumption. I often have customers advising the same. I no longer need mine as I have smart meters which have especially helped me cut my gas consumption.

People like it easy, so instead of having to work out the unit cost times the price they see the amount on their smart monitor. In winter when I could see my usage increasing I went and added another lair of clothing rather than increasing the temperature. I think people will reduce their consumption with smart meters.

For all those that say to look at the meter, many are in hard to access places. To have a monitor sitting where you can easily see it makes a big difference.

Norman_Castle

Joyful wrote: »

Norman Castle

You had a bad experience but when I have loaned out my Energy monitor people have reduced their consumption. I often have customers advising the same. I no longer need mine as I have smart meters which have especially helped me cut my gas consumption.

People like it easy, so instead of having to work out the unit cost times the price they see the amount on their smart monitor. In winter when I could see my usage increasing I went and added another lair of clothing rather than increasing the temperature. I think people will reduce their consumption with smart meters.

For all those that say to look at the meter, many are in hard to access places. To have a monitor sitting where you can easily see it makes a big difference.

Its nice to see company loyalty.
[FONT=&quot]"I am an employee of British Gas."[/FONT]