Smart meter terms and conditions

Laurensalive

This is a daft question but. Does a smart meter use energy when transmitting data?

Laurensalive

If the bills suddenly go up compared with the dumb meter. I will not be able to afford to pay the bill fact.

[Deleted User]

Laurensalive wrote: »

I have heard horror stories about the bills going up after smart meters installed. One thing that does concern me is how safe my data is. As SSE use Vodaphone and they have had a data breach in recent months. I might wait a while before getting one in.

I have nt heard any horror stories about bills going up apart from when customers have had dodgy/faulty under reading meters and the smart meter finds them out and ends their free electric.There are all sorts of ways of fiddling electric meters, fortunately smart meters are smart and stop it.
A smart meter is just a normal , superior digital meter to the usual cheap rubbish little Ampy meter fitted these days.
If you listen to all the baloney about smart meters ( stop smart meters UK etc ) it will make you as paranoid as those poor folk who actually believe all the stupidity written about them
British Gas latest smart meters dont have a sim card in them these days, they use a "hub" whatever that is. I assume that the meter can lock on to the best signal in the area so will not be tied to any particular network, correct me if I m wrong.

torbrex

Laurensalive wrote: »

This is a daft question but. Does a smart meter use energy when transmitting data?

If it does, it is minimal as it is a phone signal.

The display unit apparently uses about 20/30p a year if plugged into the mains and 3AA batteries if not but I don't know how long they last.

If you are that way inclined, if anything the smart display should make you use less electric as you will see every light switched on and things on standby.

FOREVER21

As I posted on previous threads I have nothing against smart meters but I have personally decided to wait until a "standard" meter that can be used by all energy suppliers is adopted.

I can not see the point of presently having a smart meter put in only to change my supplier and find that the meter reverts to a dumb meter again.

Regarding the benefits of smart meters I have for the past few years operated an online account and submitted regular meter readings this is no real problem and takes very little time. I can not remember the last time I had an estimated account.

With regards to the use age monitor I find it hard to believe that there can be many people who don't realise that when you boil the kettle or use an electric heater your consumption of electric will rise.

I know this is a MSE forum but realistically the odd item left on standby or low wattage light left on will not make a substantial difference to the yearly bills.

[Deleted User]

FOREVER21 wrote: »

As I posted on previous threads I have nothing against smart meters but I have personally decided to wait until a "standard" meter that can be used by all energy suppliers is adopted.

I can not see the point of presently having a smart meter put in only to change my supplier and find that the meter reverts to a dumb meter again.

Regarding the benefits of smart meters I have for the past few years operated an online account and submitted regular meter readings this is no real problem and takes very little time. I can not remember the last time I had an estimated account.

With regards to the use age monitor I find it hard to believe that there can be many people who don't realise that when you boil the kettle or use an electric heater your consumption of electric will rise.

I know this is a MSE forum but realistically the odd item left on standby or low wattage light left on will not make a substantial difference to the yearly bills.

If you had the latest smart meter fitted then its done and dusted, it will be all ready to accept smart switching,so if you switch to a backward supplier who can t be bothered to do what the Government have told them and to get a move on and fit the things then you are only at the status quo you are now except you will have a better digital meter which will still act as a superior energy monitor.Nothing lost on what you have now. A meter is a meter.

Laurensalive

I personally think it is pointless having one fitted and then switching suppliers to find it is not working with all the functions. Anyway my meters are only 7 years old. I will wait for smart meters to be put in.

edwink

Laurensalive wrote: »

If the bills suddenly go up compared with the dumb meter. I will not be able to afford to pay the bill fact.

Our leccy use actually went down. With the little monitor you get it displays your usage amongst other things. If you keep an eye on that from time to time it will help you to see what you are using not just in kilowatts but in pounds and pence too if you want it to. The Smart Meter Installer will set the little monitor up for you and put your electricity tariff in to it and away you go. Stops you over filling the kettle for one cup of tea and that sort of thing. A useful little gadget in my opinion. Where as with the old style meters you just use the electric with nothing to show what you are using unless you go and look at the meter and that does not tell you much.

Why would you think your bills would go up?

[Deleted User]

Laurensalive wrote: »

I personally think it is pointless having one fitted and then switching suppliers to find it is not working with all the functions. Anyway my meters are only 7 years old. I will wait for smart meters to be put in.

Its a real shame that the government of the time, ( which had a fair number of Lib/Dems in it ) never had the guts to do what the French, Italian and Spanish and many other European countries did and make them compulsory from day one. No doubt with the more business minded Torys in power now, the smart meter vote would steam through and common sense would prevail.So if a meter fitter tapped on your front door you had no option, you were going to get one or get cut off. Giving the public the opportunity to mess everyone about for silly reasons is just one of the big mistakes they ve made. Allowing the suppliers to organise the fitting is an even bigger one and the biggest sin is to try and sell smart meters to the public as if its big asset to them to have one when its clearly a huge benefit to suppliers to have them in place instead of mayhem and confusion of the current out of date billing systems which belong in the last century.
Over in Northern Ireland smart prepayment meters have been taking off, with the result being lower tariffs, less than the usual standard/variable rates we see in the rest of the UK . This is because the suppliers are seeing how cost effective a smart prepayment meter system is to run.

misterbarlow

Laurensalive wrote: »

But if anything goes wrong with these. There will only be the smart meters to replace them. As the older meters are no longer being made.

I fit normal legacy meters for SSE every day, we have hundreds in stores, and have been told we will continue to fit these for some time to come...
Also they don't have to be new, old meters can be re-used as long as they are within their cert date.