Compulsory Smart Meters.

legingnitnub

the whole "smart meter" crap is doing my head in.... we had one installed by British Gas May last year. We are now looking at switching supplier and apparently the cheaper suppliers do not do smart meters ! What are we supposed to do ???? :mad:

System

legingnitnub wrote: »

the whole "smart meter" crap is doing my head in.... we had one installed by British Gas May last year. We are now looking at switching supplier and apparently the cheaper suppliers do not do smart meters ! What are we supposed to do ???? :mad:

Hi - welcome to the forum. Switch at will; your meter will still record your usage. It will not communicate with your new supplier so you will have to read the meter and provide your new supplier with meter readings.

System

legingnitnub wrote: »

the whole "smart meter" crap is doing my head in.... we had one installed by British Gas May last year. We are now looking at switching supplier and apparently the cheaper suppliers do not do smart meters ! What are we supposed to do ???? :mad:

Switch to Sainsburys Energy, that is BGs cheaper white label brand offering some of the best deals in the UK. No exit fees and you can collect cashback from MSE s CheapEnergyClub and the meter continues to function as a smart meter. That is something I ve done myself on three different occasions.

System

House_Martin wrote: »

Switch to Sainsburys Energy, that is BGs cheaper white label brand offering some of the best deals in the UK. No exit fees and you can collect cashback from MSE s CheapEnergyClub and the meter continues to function as a smart meter. That is something I ve done myself on three different occasions.

It is such a cracking deal that their cheapest dual fuel tariff would cost me an additional £224 per year. My index finger got tired scrolling down the page. The poster above needs to do a full comparison based on usage and postcode.

System

Hengus wrote: »

It is such a cracking deal that their cheapest dual fuel tariff would cost me an additional £224 per year. My index finger got tired scrolling down the page. The poster above needs to do a full comparison based on usage and postcode.

I ve been getting £40 a time cashback doing a BG/Sainsburys switch via the C.E.C..back to BG etc.. At the moment I have property supplied by Sainsburys Energy (June 2017 fix ) with the cheapest electric in the UK at 7.8p/kwhr inc vat.. Ok Sainsburys are down the list at the moment a bit but not everyone wants to go to some here today gone tomorrow outfit and they prefer to stick to a supplier they have actually heard of. Sainsburys are someone I can recommend.Good website, and they answer the phone in a minute if needed because they are the best run supplier in the UK.... BG. WHD is available with Sainsburys too

Micron

House_Martin wrote: »

They WILL be made compulsory eventually so why bother waiting

So House Martin can you please tell us all exactly when smart meters will become compulsory and where does this information come from?

boliston

I thought the main benefit of smart meters was they would allow cheaper power at periods where demand is lower and people could do things like run appliances (dishwashers, clothes washers etc) when costs are lower. I think each 24 hours can be sub divided into 48 billing periods depending on demand on the grid.

System

boliston wrote: »

I thought the main benefit of smart meters was they would allow cheaper power at periods where demand is lower and people could do things like run appliances (dishwashers, clothes washers etc) when costs are lower. I think each 24 hours can be sub divided into 48 billing periods depending on demand on the grid.

You already have that , and have had it for donkeys years in the form of a standard Eco 7 meter which gives around half price electric for 7 hours. BG have trialled a different Time Of Use tariff which gave free electricity weekends for smart meters but this was only for standard/variable customers.No doubt other TOU tariffs will appear once the smart roll out increases.
The main reason for smart meters is for the suppliers to be able to run their businesses cheaply and correctly with no estimates, much fewer meter readers, prepayment meters which work better and can be topped up online and billing which does not rely on the vagaries of a lazy public who seem to think the suppliers have a mystical knowledge of their usage. A very serious plus factor is that they will drastically cut the free energy bonanza which is in place at the moment which a section of the public who think it is their right to have free energy...fiddlers in other words. Todays old prepayment meters are so easy to breach its unbelievable.

Micron

leaphtc wrote: »

They unit is very small. Suppliers are responsible for providing and fitting smart meters for everyone in Britain by 2020
I am not allowed to post link, but google Smart meters: a guide - GOV.UK for all the info you need

The GOV.UK Smart meter guide you quoted has on the first page:-
"Smart meters will be rolled out as standard across the country by the end of 2020. But there is no legal obligation on individuals to have one."

So the answer to gettingtheresometime question is:- No your Mum does not have to have a smart meter fitted.

System

Micron wrote: »

The GOV.UK Smart meter guide you quoted has on the first page:-
"Smart meters will be rolled out as standard across the country by the end of 2020. But there is no legal obligation on individuals to have one."

So the answer to gettingtheresometime question is:- No your Mum does not have to have a smart meter fitted.

At this moment in time, smart meters are not compulsory; however,.......

There was a line in the evidence given to HoC Science and Technology Committee (Spring 2016) suggesting that the then DECC were looking to see whether the Government should make it mandatory that whenever a meter was changed for End-of-Life and/or safety reasons that the replacement should be a smart meter (from mid-2018 onwards). A clever way to get around consumer objections - particularly, as the consumer has no say as to when a meter has had its day.