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Smart Meters

Ebe_Scrooge
Ebe_Scrooge Posts: 7,320 Forumite
Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
in Energy
My electricity supplier has been bombarding me with offers to install a Smart Meter for free. The existing meter is modern ( the house is only 8 years old ). Simple question - is it worth getting a smart meter installed ?

What are the benefits to me ? What are the benefits to the supplier ? Why do they want to give me something for free ? ( call me an old cynic, but you don't get owt for nowt in this life ! )

Perhaps more importantly, would having one fitted prevent me from switching suppliers in the future ?
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Comments

  • HappyMJ
    HappyMJ Posts: 21,115 Forumite
    10,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    edited 22 July 2014 at 9:36AM
    The benefits for you is accurate billing without the need to read the meter and send that meter reading to the supplier. The benefit for them is not having to employ meter readers as the readings are sent remotely to the company.

    So...it'll add a few pounds per year to supply these meters and support the technology and it'll save a few pounds per year not having to employ meter readers. The difference to your bill is nothing.

    The debate about these meters is that it sends half hourly meter readings and someone/hacker could find out, by accessing that information, your lifestyle and your habits. What time you are at work and what time you sleep. This can be very personal information that people don't want shared. It's promised that the information won't be sold to marketing firms but what about if the information is stolen and then sold to marketing firms. Do you really want to bombarded by marketing firms as soon as you get in from work..

    The advantage to you in the future is they may be able to offer cheap electricity for certain periods when too much electricity is being produced such as weekends and the disadvantage to you is they could charge you much more at certain times such as for example between 4pm and 6pm when they don't want as much electricity used. However, by discouraging usage at peak times they might not have to build more power stations which could save everybody a couple of pounds per year.
    :footie:
    :p Regular savers earn 6% interest (HSBC, First Direct, M&S) :p Loans cost 2.9% per year (Nationwide) = FREE money. :p
  • GingerBob_3
    GingerBob_3 Posts: 3,659 Forumite
    HappyMJ wrote: »
    The benefits for you is accurate billing without the need to read the meter and send that meter reading to the supplier. The benefit for them is not having to employ meter readers as the readings are sent remotely to the company.

    So...it'll add a few pounds per year to supply these meters and support the technology and it'll save a few pounds per year not having to employ meter readers. The difference to your bill is nothing.

    The debate about these meters is that it sends half hourly meter readings and someone/hacker could find out, by accessing that information, your lifestyle and your habits. What time you are at work and what time you sleep. This can be very personal information that people don't want shared. It's promised that the information won't be sold to marketing firms but what about if the information is stolen and then sold to marketing firms. Do you really want to bombarded by marketing firms as soon as you get in from work..

    The advantage to you in the future is they may be able to offer cheap electricity for certain periods when too much electricity is being produced such as weekends and the disadvantage to you is they could charge you much more at certain times such as for example between 4pm and 6pm when they don't want as much electricity used. However, by discouraging usage at peak times they might not have to build more power stations which could save everybody a couple of pounds per year.

    A good summary. Also, if there's any sort of billing dispute they could remotely disconnect you. Because such disconnections will be so easy they are likely to become common - disconnect now, ask questions later, sort of thing.

    In my view the disadvantages outweigh the advantages. I would not have one. It's a good observation; why are they so keen for you to get one?

    Not NPower is it? Heaven help you if it is, and you choose to have one.
  • Ebe_Scrooge
    Ebe_Scrooge Posts: 7,320 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    Wow, lots of things to consider there - thanks for your comprehensive reply
  • Ebe_Scrooge
    Ebe_Scrooge Posts: 7,320 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    GingerBob wrote: »
    Not NPower is it? Heaven help you if it is, and you choose to have one.

    It's British Gas - which always makes me chuckle, seeing as how there's no gas in the village, we all use oil :D
  • HappyMJ
    HappyMJ Posts: 21,115 Forumite
    10,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    edited 22 July 2014 at 9:57AM
    Ebe_Scrooge wrote: »
    It's British Gas - which always makes me chuckle, seeing as how there's no gas in the village, we all use oil :D
    They have tariffs that give you free electricity on Saturdays or Sundays as an incentive to switch to a smart meter. Would that suit you? Electricity will cost more on the other days of the week. My area it would be 12.27p/kWh as opposed to discount fix Sep 2015 which would be 10.6p/kWh.

    You can check here --> http://www.britishgas.co.uk/products-and-services/gas-and-electricity/our-energy-tariffs/tariff-information.html
    :footie:
    :p Regular savers earn 6% interest (HSBC, First Direct, M&S) :p Loans cost 2.9% per year (Nationwide) = FREE money. :p
  • torbrex
    torbrex Posts: 71,340 Forumite
    10,000 Posts Combo Breaker Rampant Recycler Hung up my suit!
    Ebe_Scrooge wrote: »
    My electricity supplier has been bombarding me with offers to install a Smart Meter for free. The existing meter is modern ( the house is only 8 years old ). Simple question - is it worth getting a smart meter installed ?

    What are the benefits to me ? What are the benefits to the supplier ? Why do they want to give me something for free ? ( call me an old cynic, but you don't get owt for nowt in this life ! )

    Perhaps more importantly, would having one fitted prevent me from switching suppliers in the future ?
    In modern terms, an 8 year old meter is actually closer to its end of life than you might think, the meters made around that time only have an expected life of 10 to 12 years.

    As far as the question of a possible supplier change, only your supplier can really answer that.
    The answer I got from my supplier (Hydro) was that yes I can switch but the 'smart' meter will lose its smart functions and revert to being a basic meter that requires to be read by the new supplier.
  • Ebe_Scrooge
    Ebe_Scrooge Posts: 7,320 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    Free electricity ? Now that's something worth considering - I'll look into it and work out if it'll be worth the higher price on other days. Thanks.
  • HappyMJ
    HappyMJ Posts: 21,115 Forumite
    10,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    Ebe_Scrooge wrote: »
    Free electricity ? Now that's something worth considering - I'll look into it and work out if it'll be worth the higher price on other days. Thanks.

    What I would do this Saturday or Sunday is try it out. Read the meter at 9am then use as much electricity as possible. Wash the clothes, do the dishwashing, heat all the water using electricity rather than oil. Have a nice hot bath and reheat the water again. Run the air conditioning/heating using electric(not at this time of year though) etc etc... then at 5pm read the meter again. Then work out the difference and figure out what amount of electricity would not be charged for.
    :footie:
    :p Regular savers earn 6% interest (HSBC, First Direct, M&S) :p Loans cost 2.9% per year (Nationwide) = FREE money. :p
  • Ebe_Scrooge
    Ebe_Scrooge Posts: 7,320 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    I just had a look on their website, it seems it's only available to dual fuel customers, and I don't have gas. But thanks for the info, it may be useful to other folk.
  • HappyMJ
    HappyMJ Posts: 21,115 Forumite
    10,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    Ebe_Scrooge wrote: »
    I just had a look on their website, it seems it's only available to dual fuel customers, and I don't have gas. But thanks for the info, it may be useful to other folk.

    Are you sure about that? I can't see that. The dual fuel discount is £15 per year which you would not get as your heating fuel is oil.
    :footie:
    :p Regular savers earn 6% interest (HSBC, First Direct, M&S) :p Loans cost 2.9% per year (Nationwide) = FREE money. :p
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