Can I be forced to have a smart meter?

EssexHebridean

There is no "12 month guarantee" on a smart meter - or indeed an analogue meter - and if it should go wrong at any tie in its life, the supplier will sort out repair or (more likely) replacement as it is their meter, not the consumer's. the wording in the letter on this is poor at best, uneducated at worst, and downright misleading, regardless! 

As for "10% of smart meters that currently go wrong" - there is no such figure - the quoted figure for Smart meters "not working" includes older SMETS1 meters which have not been adopted onto the system  as yet, and may also include some where in fact the smart meter is working perfectly, but the IHD is not functioning (or even perhaps present) any more.  Hardly surprising that people are still conflating the two things when it would appear from the letter you refer to even the Energy Secretary is muddling them up! 

Saighdeoir

We are leaseholders on a property and recently received a letter from the management company RMG that we due to have a 'communal meter' located externally to the property replaced by a smart meter. They are not communal they are for each individual property so that seems a bit off.

This letter arrived on the very day it was due to be installed and we were given no notice or opportunity to object - even if we could.

This seems very questionable and it would not be our choice for one of these to be installed. We know it won't be done for 'our' benefit so would object for that reason alone.

Interested to know where someone in our position actually sits in all this. Understand they can be set to 'dumb mode' so that is an option but upset by the underhand 'management' of this.

BarelySentientAI

Saighdeoir said:

We are leaseholders on a property and recently received a letter from the management company RMG that we due to have a 'communal meter' located externally to the property replaced by a smart meter. They are not communal they are for each individual property so that seems a bit off.

This letter arrived on the very day it was due to be installed and we were given no notice or opportunity to object - even if we could.

This seems very questionable and it would not be our choice for one of these to be installed. We know it won't be done for 'our' benefit so would object for that reason alone.

Interested to know where someone in our position actually sits in all this. Understand they can be set to 'dumb mode' so that is an option but upset by the underhand 'management' of this.

Not your meter, not in your property.  Objecting just for the sake of it is not useful.

wild666

The meters are the property of the suppliers, not yours, depending on when the analogue meters were installed the end of their certified period might be coming to an end or they might have years to run. If the analogue meters were installed in 2010 and have a certification period of 25 to 35 year they will be OK until 2035 or 2045, any supplier that tries to claim they have come to their end of certification period would be wrong if they homeowner knew how long the certification period was and a supplier tried to fit a smart meter claiming this. 

A supplier can, I think, change the meters at any time they like as they own them.

Netexporter

We are leaseholders on a property and recently received a letter from the management company RMG that we due to have a 'communal meter' located externally to the property replaced by a smart meter. They are not communal they are for each individual property so that seems a bit off.

So was your individual meter changed? I suspect the building managers were letting you know that the communal supply meter, for common area lighting etc, was being changed and there might be disruption to lifts/lighting that could affect you.

Your individual supply is between you and you chosen supplier, nothing to do with the management company.

BarelySentientAI

wild666 said:

If the analogue meters were installed in 2010 and have a certification period of 25 to 35 year

That's very unlikely.  There aren't many recent meters with 25 year certifications, and only a few legacy meters had anything over 30 years.

If anyone is ever interested, the list is here:
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/65ddfab7f1cab30011fc47e3/electricity-meters-schedule-4-240219.pdf 

I'm almost leaning towards more meters being out of certification than in by now - including some early smart meters.

Saighdeoir

Thanks for the replies. As I can't seem to respond to individual replies I will add that the text of the letter says 'upgrading our communal electricity meters...' 'in your property' which is kind of a contradiction in terms and somewhat confusing.

As Netex above says which I think that is correct regarding this work. There will be communal meters for the reasons they give. But by virtue of it being 'communal' 'in your property' seems incorrect. The shared space is the reason for the 'management' role but I will confirm this and the state of our meter now before commenting further.

As some have also stated and indeed I have seen on this website the individual supply is between the supplier and the receiver. Therefore anything that affects the providing of that will affect the service user and so is very much the consumers business.

This is a new build property - less than 10 years old so there should be no reason for any change being necessary at this stage in terms of 'wear and tear'. I'm sure the management would never want to do this because there maybe a financial incentive either...

BarelySentientAI

Saighdeoir said:

 I'm sure the management would never want to do this because there maybe a financial incentive either...

There isn't. No reason to invent conspiracies. 

If anything, there is a financial incentive for you as the consumer to have a smart meter because then you can get the cheapest tariffs.

tim_p

BarelySentientAI said:

If anyone is ever interested, the list is here:
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/65ddfab7f1cab30011fc47e3/electricity-meters-schedule-4-240219.pdf 

Is there an equivalent for gas meters?  Our elec meter was rated for 40 years, installed in 86 (now smart) but gas meter has been replaced once since then but no idea when it’ll be due again. 

BarelySentientAI

tim_p said:

BarelySentientAI said:

If anyone is ever interested, the list is here:
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/65ddfab7f1cab30011fc47e3/electricity-meters-schedule-4-240219.pdf 

Is there an equivalent for gas meters?  Our elec meter was rated for 40 years, installed in 86 (now smart) but gas meter has been replaced once since then but no idea when it’ll be due again. 

Strangely, there is no equivalent to Schedule 4 for gas meters.

Best I can do off-hand is the list of type approval certificates, but a lot of those are old and they don't really mean the same thing.

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/gas-meters-type-approval-certificates-annex-iv-mi-002