why are energy companies pushing smart meters? what's the catch??

aoleks

Hi all,

I recently moved, switched to utility warehouse for gas/elec. Everything went fine, but I started getting phone calls, sometimes twice a day, from sales people trying to get me to install a smart meter. While they're not rude, they're very pushy and don't even ask if I want one, jumping straight to engineers' availability. There are financial incentives for doing it as well, which is fishy to me.

While I understand that a smart meter doesn't do much other than send readings automatically and give its customers a user-friendly interface that helps them visualise how much they consume, why this great push? Why pay people to install one if it's only that?

There MUST be a catch, otherwise they wouldn't be so desperate to have them installed, right? I'm the type who's on top of finances and utilities 24/7, so that meter won't do much, I prefer to submit readings online.

Any thoughts?

Thanks

wild666

All a smart meter does is give you a IHD so you can check your usage and the need to stop giving monthly readings to your supplier. Other than that it's a normal electric/gas meter. 

If someone wants to cut their usage then it's simply to turn everything off that's not in use at the wall socket.

[Deleted User]

All suppliers have been set targets by Ofgem for smart meter installations. Smart meters form a part of what is known as a smart grid. Smart grids are needed because of the need to integrate variable renewable energy outputs into what is an old grid distribution system. Increasingly we will see suppliers rolling out time-of-use tariffs with variable kWh charges during the day. Consumers who remain on non smart tariffs can expect to pay more for their energy.

FWiW, I would expect smart meters to become mandatory. Suppliers are already allowed to fit smart meters to replace end-of-life meters without the homeowner’s consent.

PS. A smart meter does a lot more than just record usage. Suppliers and DNOs can get a lot of information from your meter such as the voltage to your home etc. 

theoretica

You supplier is pushing you because they are themselves being pushed.

While for you - who are on top of things - there may not be a great personal advantage there may advantages on average. If there are fewer people who build up huge arrears through not realising they need to take readings (or, misreading) that will be a benefit and maybe less bad debt for the energy companies' other customers to pay for.

Astria

They get a lot of information from the smart meters every hour or more meaning they can do things like time of use tariffs (cheap rates after midnight, standard rate until 5pm, peak rate during the evening, etc).

They can also measure the voltage at the premises and know when there is a fault in the area.

and smart meters have 2 way communication, so they can also do things like turn of your electricity supply remotely, which before required removal of the mains fuse. This means that in the future, high power devices such as charging vehicles can be forced to turn off during periods of high load on the network (eg, during periods of TV commercials when everyone decides to switch the kettle on).

MWT

Astria said:

This means that in the future, high power devices such as charging vehicles can be forced to turn off during periods of high load on the network (eg, during periods of TV commercials when everyone decides to switch the kettle on).

That part is dependent on smart charging devices, not the smart meter.

meinnit

Astria said:

 This means that in the future, high power devices such as charging vehicles can be forced to turn off during periods of high load on the network (eg, during periods of TV commercials when everyone decides to switch the kettle on).

Do you have a source for this info?

[Deleted User]

meinnit said:

Astria said:

 This means that in the future, high power devices such as charging vehicles can be forced to turn off during periods of high load on the network (eg, during periods of TV commercials when everyone decides to switch the kettle on).

Do you have a source for this info?

Demand Side Response (DSR)  and Remote Disconnection is built into the SMETS2 Technical Specification. In a number of countries, consumers can elect for a cheaper power limited tariff. The limit applies during contractually agreed periods of high demand (eg; 4 to 7 pm). If the consumer has agreed to, say, a 4kW power limit during these periods and this is exceeded then, after many messages by text, IHD etc, the supplier has the right to disconnect the electricity supply. It is restored after calling a dedicated line. Repeated breaches result in a tariff change.

There is no question of turning off millions of meters during half time in a match. This would be foolish for a number of reasons. Firstly, it could unbalance the frequency of the Grid; it would be technically difficult to send out millions of messages and it would be illegal. Disconnections have to be by Court Order; legislation or by consent (eg; a prepayment meter or power-limited tariff). The DSR side of smart meters may be used to prevent EV owners from charging their cars at certain times, and they can be used to power limit the charge during periods of high demand.

Industry experts have calculated that the alternative to a smart Grid is a 400% expansion of the present Grid.

Astria

wittynamegoeshere said:

That sort of cleverness would require that all our second generation meters are replaced with new ones that have off-peak only outlets.  This would have been a good idea, but it hasn't happened.  Currently, to stop your car charging they'd need to cut you off completely, so you wouldn't be watching TV or making a cuppa.

Or they could leave the current meters as they are and instead have a smart consumer unit - the smart meter would then communicate with your smart consumer unit and you could decide to have high current applications such as car chargers or even some types of electric heating that are on their own circuits to be turned off during periods of high power usage in the area. You could decline to have such equipment installed but you would then end up paying more as a result (like what is happening at the moment for some smart meter only tariffs).

I'd expect that managing load on the existing network will be far cheaper than expanding the network to support more load.

YorksLass

Energy companies have been set targets by the Government to install smart meters in customer homes; failure to reach the set targets results in the energy companies receiving a fine.  Hence the reason why you are bombarded with phone calls, emails and letters.

Difficult to see how they could become compulsory though - we (reluctantly) agreed to have one fitted (condition of fixed price plan) but when the engineer came it was physically impossible for him to isolate the mains supply so he was not able not install one.  Block of maisonettes, pre-1960s build, council owned so it would be down to them to facilitate any necessary remedial action.  Because we had agreed in principle to have one, we still got the fixed price plan though.

Gerry1

MWT said:

Astria said:

This means that in the future, high power devices such as charging vehicles can be forced to turn off during periods of high load on the network (eg, during periods of TV commercials when everyone decides to switch the kettle on).

That part is dependent on smart charging devices, not the smart meter.

WRONG !

Load Limiting and Load Shedding was built into the specification right from the start.  It's all part of the Demand Side Response (DSR) strategy that's the real driver of the Smart Meters project.

Even the old SMETS1 electricity meters have the Load Limiting Capability to switch supply off (or increment a counter) when an ‘instantaneous use’ threshold is crossed.

You could be even be limited to just 2kW if you don't pay for a premium tariff, so when there's not enough juice to go round your property will be instantly disconnected if you try to boil a kettle ! 

Edit: Second link corrected.