Landlord claims breach of contract because of SmartMeter

grumiofoundation

Tightfinger said:

I know this is an old thread, but being a Landlord of a property which the Tenants checked out of today, I have just read all 7 pages to discover that the OP never bothered to report back as promised, with the deposit Adjudicators ruling.

I have been put in the same position as the OP's Landlord, by my Tenants having decided to get a smart meter installed without bothering to mention it to me - even though our tenancy agreement clearly states that they have must not change the meters without my consent.

I am really p****d off for a few reasons:

1) The new meters are very difficult to read - the display on both meters is smaller and dimmer than the old ones. Also, the electric meter is near the ceiling and you now need to stand on a chair or similar to read it - the gas meter is just above ground level outside and you now need to kneel on the pavement to get low enough to read it.

2) You need to press buttons to get the readings and it is uncertain what information the display is showing you.

3) The Tenants managed to pack away and remove the 'In House Display', which is the only benefit I can see the new system offers.

4) Their energy provider, Eon will not even discuss it with me until the account paperwork is in my name, by which time the Tenants will have long gone.

I am dreading the extra hassle this will cause at each change of Tenants. Having been a Landlord for 20 years, I know it is highly likely the IHD will repeatedly get lost and how much do you expect it will cost to replace that?

I want the old units put back, but don't see how that can be instigated.

Hate smart meters.

And much much less rent will you be forced to charge due the actions of the tenants?

Slinky

Tightfinger said:

I know this is an old thread, but being a Landlord of a property which the Tenants checked out of today, I have just read all 7 pages to discover that the OP never bothered to report back as promised, with the deposit Adjudicators ruling.

I have been put in the same position as the OP's Landlord, by my Tenants having decided to get a smart meter installed without bothering to mention it to me - even though our tenancy agreement clearly states that they have must not change the meters without my consent.

I am really p****d off for a few reasons:

1) The new meters are very difficult to read - the display on both meters is smaller and dimmer than the old ones. Also, the electric meter is near the ceiling and you now need to stand on a chair or similar to read it - the gas meter is just above ground level outside and you now need to kneel on the pavement to get low enough to read it.

2) You need to press buttons to get the readings and it is uncertain what information the display is showing you.

3) The Tenants managed to pack away and remove the 'In House Display', which is the only benefit I can see the new system offers.

4) Their energy provider, Eon will not even discuss it with me until the account paperwork is in my name, by which time the Tenants will have long gone.

I am dreading the extra hassle this will cause at each change of Tenants. Having been a Landlord for 20 years, I know it is highly likely the IHD will repeatedly get lost and how much do you expect it will cost to replace that?

I want the old units put back, but don't see how that can be instigated.

Hate smart meters.

The OP who never came back hasn't logged in since 2018. Would suggest you try sending a message through the personal message system and hope they get an email they come back and answer your question.

jon81uk

Tightfinger said:

I know this is an old thread, but being a Landlord of a property which the Tenants checked out of today, I have just read all 7 pages to discover that the OP never bothered to report back as promised, with the deposit Adjudicators ruling.

I have been put in the same position as the OP's Landlord, by my Tenants having decided to get a smart meter installed without bothering to mention it to me - even though our tenancy agreement clearly states that they have must not change the meters without my consent.

I am really p****d off for a few reasons:

1) The new meters are very difficult to read - the display on both meters is smaller and dimmer than the old ones. Also, the electric meter is near the ceiling and you now need to stand on a chair or similar to read it - the gas meter is just above ground level outside and you now need to kneel on the pavement to get low enough to read it.

2) You need to press buttons to get the readings and it is uncertain what information the display is showing you.

3) The Tenants managed to pack away and remove the 'In House Display', which is the only benefit I can see the new system offers.

4) Their energy provider, Eon will not even discuss it with me until the account paperwork is in my name, by which time the Tenants will have long gone.

I am dreading the extra hassle this will cause at each change of Tenants. Having been a Landlord for 20 years, I know it is highly likely the IHD will repeatedly get lost and how much do you expect it will cost to replace that?

I want the old units put back, but don't see how that can be instigated.

Hate smart meters.

The meter and the in home display is the property of the electric company. Even if it is lost then it is up to them to recover the cost not you, but the new tenant can just ask for a replacement in home unit.

The electricity company will likely want to replace the meter at some point anyway, so you probably should just accept that going forward there will be smart meters installed.

GHolmesAdmin

You won't be able to have the old units put back, they are discarded anyway, the only replacement meter you could get is another smart meter if this one went wrong.

diggingdude

Landlords should be pleased the tenant took the time off work to have new meters fitted rather than the landlord having to have them changed in their own time. The cheapest tariffs often involve smart meters, would you compensate a tenant who couldn't have the cheapest tariff in your property 

rik111

Tightfinger said:

I know this is an old thread, but being a Landlord of a property which the Tenants checked out of today, I have just read all 7 pages to discover that the OP never bothered to report back as promised, with the deposit Adjudicators ruling.

I have been put in the same position as the OP's Landlord, by my Tenants having decided to get a smart meter installed without bothering to mention it to me - even though our tenancy agreement clearly states that they have must not change the meters without my consent.

I am really p****d off for a few reasons:

1) The new meters are very difficult to read - the display on both meters is smaller and dimmer than the old ones. Also, the electric meter is near the ceiling and you now need to stand on a chair or similar to read it - the gas meter is just above ground level outside and you now need to kneel on the pavement to get low enough to read it.

2) You need to press buttons to get the readings and it is uncertain what information the display is showing you.

3) The Tenants managed to pack away and remove the 'In House Display', which is the only benefit I can see the new system offers.

4) Their energy provider, Eon will not even discuss it with me until the account paperwork is in my name, by which time the Tenants will have long gone.

I am dreading the extra hassle this will cause at each change of Tenants. Having been a Landlord for 20 years, I know it is highly likely the IHD will repeatedly get lost and how much do you expect it will cost to replace that?

I want the old units put back, but don't see how that can be instigated.

Hate smart meters.

Oh what a disaster, they changed the meter..... You wait until someone moves out owing 6 months rent leaving a trashed flat. Think you need to get a grip 😚

steampowered

Tightfinger said:

I have been put in the same position as the OP's Landlord, by my Tenants having decided to get a smart meter installed without bothering to mention it to me - even though our tenancy agreement clearly states that they have must not change the meters without my consent.

Hate smart meters.

As per the Ofgem website, if the tenant pays the utility bills, the tenant is entitled to have a smart meter fitted. It's really none of your business.

Why do you hate smart meters? It's a much more logical system than billing people for estimated usage. It's a much cheaper way of doing it than having to employ people to come round and read meters.

I don't see why it makes any difference to you anyway, given that the property is tenanted, and given that you leave tenants to sort out the utility bills? If anything, surely it's a positive since there can now be no risk of a dispute over who used what energy when a tenant leaves the property.

Tightfinger

That barrage of trivia doesn't address any of the issues sensibly, so I won't bother to argue with your interjections.

I want dumb meters reinstalled, but don't know if there is a tried and tested procedure for this. I hope there may be people reading this thread who have had similar experiences and are able to offer some constructive advice.

macman

No, there is no procedure at all for reverting to dumb meters.
Beware accidental landlord wearing tin hat...

unforeseen

You can get the energy supplier to turn the meter dumb if you wish but whilst a tenant pays the energy bills then you can't prevent them getting the smart functions re-enable when they take out a tenancy. 
Attempts to dictate in the AST would easily get ruled as an unfair term and voided.