Smart Meter / Actual Meter Mix up

cyrilkalathoor

Hi,

Moved into a new property on 19/3/21 and started using the existing provider (British Gas) opened the account using the smart meter readings during this point never bothered checking the actual meter reading itself as the property got the smart meter with the British gas IHD display so no issues - Smart meter installed by the previous owners back in 2016. 

Decided to move to a new provider Avro Energy and accidentally checked on the actual meter reading on the day of the move and realized that there is a discrepancy of 900units between actual meter and the IHD readings which British gas use to bill me which they keep on saying is the correct reading over the last 3 months.

Now I have moved into Avro Energy and they started the account with a new meter reading 110units more than the closing balance.

Can someone tell me how to fix this issue ? The actual meter reading was always 800-900 units over than what's been classified by British gas as the actual reading. 

It's physically impossible for a normal household to use 1000-units over 3 months when British gas confirmed that it's 6- units per day is our average use and we been away 6 weeks during the last 3 months period. 

Thanks 

QrizB

It's not clear exactly which readings are which. Is the IHD displaying a higher number than the smart meter, or vice-versa?

As you have a BG IHD it's likely that BG also installed the smart meter. Another forum user @mikejay recently had a problem where BG had previously used a second register on his meter for a limited time, and had then switched to only billing against one register. In Mike's case the IHD was displaying the total of both registers, so when he switched to E.ON there was 3000kWh "extra" to account for.

Does this describe your situation? Can you check your smart meter and see if there is a second register?

Reed_Richards

Whatever happens, both your new supplier and you old supplier are obliged to use the same handover reading.  This reading is subject to an adjudication process so will not necessarily be the same reading you gave to your new supplier. 

cyrilkalathoor

QrizB said:

It's not clear exactly which readings are which. Is the IHD displaying a higher number than the smart meter, or vice-versa?

As you have a BG IHD it's likely that BG also installed the smart meter. Another forum user @mikejay recently had a problem where BG had previously used a second register on his meter for a limited time, and had then switched to only billing against one register. In Mike's case the IHD was displaying the total of both registers, so when he switched to E.ON there was 3000kWh "extra" to account for.

Does this describe your situation? Can you check your smart meter and see if there is a second register?

Smart meter showing 850-900 units more than the BG IHD which is what BG used to produce the bill. I'm led to believe that BG installed smart meter back in 2016 and no one bothered to check the meter over these years to find this error until i accidently look into it. Over the 3 months i used BG it was all fine as I was using roughly 6units per day.

cyrilkalathoor

Reed_Richards said:

Whatever happens, both your new supplier and you old supplier are obliged to use the same handover reading.  This reading is subject to an adjudication process so will not necessarily be the same reading you gave to your new supplier. 

Funny thing was I haven't provided any starting reading to them and apparently they got this from the national database which is 110units over from the BG closing reading and for the gas the info they got from database is correct. 

imeach

With that meter, I would ALWAYS take the Rate 1 reading rather than the total in your picture

Press the green button several times until you get to Rate 1

It "may" be the same as total, but those meters and the previous occupants may have had a tariff with BG that had free electric on a Saturday or Sunday

QrizB

cyrilkalathoor said:

Smart meter showing 850-900 units more than the BG IHD which is what BG used to produce the bill.

It's the smart meter that's correct, not the IHD. If the smart meter reads "Total acct import" and says 16054kWh, then that's the amount of energy that your property has imported from the grid since the meter was installed.

There is a button on your smart meter. If you press the button, the display will give some other information. Is there anything useful there?

Tallerdave

QrizB said:

cyrilkalathoor said:

Smart meter showing 850-900 units more than the BG IHD which is what BG used to produce the bill.

It's the smart meter that's correct, not the IHD. If the smart meter reads "Total acct import" and says 16054kWh, then that's the amount of energy that your property has imported from the grid since the meter was installed.

But as the post above yours points out, not necessarily the amount that should be paid for.

I think customers should only ever supply register readings R1 and/or R2. 

mikejay

Sounds exactly like my problem I was with british gas and you mention 2016 which will be around the time BG had free electricity at weekends. I swapped to eon in march and have had a knightmare trying to sort my massive bill out. All because I gave eon the meter total. As requested as I did not know BG had set up 2 registers on my meter so now i am over by 3348kw which was the units of free electricity Still not sorted it.

mikejay

I have the same meter and have emailed Martin Lewis and Ripoff britain as I think many people will have fallen victim to this and people need to know about it. 
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6277550/eon-massive-bill/p1

cyrilkalathoor

imeach said:

With that meter, I would ALWAYS take the Rate 1 reading rather than the total in your picture

Press the green button several times until you get to Rate 1

It "may" be the same as total, but those meters and the previous occupants may have had a tariff with BG that had free electric on a Saturday or Sunday

Thanks so much as I wasn't aware abt the R1 readings. R1 reading aligned with the previous BG readings and I have provided it now to the new supplier. So hopefully it will be resolved now.