Smart Gas Meter & Octopus Energy Woes

LondonJS

This is all very interesting! 

I have just experienced something similar - I have been pestering Octopus for gas bills since November last year, and after finally getting regular bills for the last few months (based on email requests each time) they have applied a 'firmware' fix to my GWI smart meter which has doubled my meter reading, and consequently doubled what they say I have used since the smart meter was installed in March last year. 

What doesn't stack up (aside from charging me for more than a years usage without warning!) is that based on the new 'correct' meter reading my gas consumption has doubled. Given my Jan/Feb/Mar 2022 consumption (with the new smart meter, but original firmware) was within a few % of Jan/Feb/Mar 2021 (our previous non-smart meter) I don't see how this can be the case, and I find it very odd that they haven't wondered that themselves!

I am working with them to get it resolved, but I don't see how this is reasonable behaviour. In the first instance I cannot see how my usage has doubled (it's double for every month I check with their new readings versus our old meter), and secondly IF (and it's a big IF) my usage has doubled, and I knew it at the time, I could have done something about it. 

Perhaps it's time to go back to non-smart meters and I normally like new tech!

pochase

Have you taken regular meter readings? 

What has doubled? Did your current meter read suddenly up from 10000 to 20000? Or did only the KWh go up?

What was your meter reading last November and what is it today? And how many KWh have they initially billed you and how many now?

Alnat1

Were previous bills on estimates and did you never give an actual read?

LondonJS

pochase said:

Have you taken regular meter readings? 

What has doubled? Did your current meter read suddenly up from 10000 to 20000? Or did only the KWh go up?

What was your meter reading last November and what is it today? And how many KWh have they initially billed you and how many now?

Yes took regular meter readings (with photos), and these always matched what Octopus had on the bills. It was the meter reading that doubled - sometime over the last couple of weeks it went from 1600 to 3200, and then the balance was updated on my account (although no bill was issued until I queried it). 

They billed me for an additional circa 18500 KWh based on the updated meter reading which is the same amount we had used over the previous 12 months, so they are now saying we have used 37000 KWh. 

LondonJS

Alnat1 said:

Were previous bills on estimates and did you never give an actual read?

No, all bills were actual and I checked against the meter. 

The only issue I had was bills not being issued unless I emailed them - until they decided the meter reading was wrong and doubled it!

RareRabbit

Hi am having this exact problem.

We had our smart meter GWi Metrix fitted in October 2021 and we noticed the two readings 02 and 10 when we tried to manually read the meter. 

02 seemed to be lower and was the number sent to Octopus on readings whilst 10 was higher and was the same as our IHD. 

We noticed this at the end of March.

Our smart meter stopped transmitting readings to Octopus between 5 July to 12 November when they remotely fixed it. The readings sent to Octopus were still the lower readings until 27 November when they jumped overnight on 28 November by 359 units. This came to light when we got a bill last week for £570 gas.

I have tried to understand what went on, with the data from my Octopus app I saw when it jumped. 

As of last Tuesday my Smart meter 02 and 10 and IHD readings were identical so I suggested to a octopus that the jump was digitally.  Now I understand from this feed it was Firmware, Software updating to using the Consumption figures. 

Since contacting Octopus last week they first removed the £570 and today have put it back on at £567. Ive contacted them again today. 

I think the meter was sending 02 readings and don’t know if these were too low, and am going to analyse our yearly usage. It would seem that the firmware, software update is now using an updated consumption figure.

Does anyone know if the 10 Consumption reading and IHD are m3? Also does this reading already have the Volume Correction calculated in value (1.02264)?

Its so difficult to know what to do, I wish I had stayed with my old meter. 

[Deleted User]

Our smart meter stopped transmitting readings to Octopus between 5 July to 12 November 

Smart meter comms hubs are a bit like mobile phones. They remain connected to the network but only call out in certain circumstances: for example, to send a tamper alert; gas battery low alert or high/low voltage. To get data, the supplier uses secure software (an adapter) to ‘pull’ data from the meter.

The meter data is a package comprising of up to 4 index readings and an XML file containing 30 minute usage information for each meter. Last year a number of Kaifa meters were returning an empty XML file after a meter firmware update. Seven months on, and 3 firmware updates later, the problem was solved. Each smart meter holds import data for 13 months.

Gas data shown on an IHD comes from the gas proxy meter located within the comms hub. This meter takes gas usage and tariff data from the gas meter via the Zigbee Home Area Network and converts M3 into kWh and cost using a fixed calorific value. It is designed this way to protect gas meter battery life. The calculation that the gas proxy meter undertakes is the same as is shown on your statement (albeit, the CVs used may be slightly different).

Finally, the meter readings shown on the IHD are the TOTAL of the 4 registers contained within each meter. My electricity meter uses index T01 for offpeak and T02 for peak. If T01 is 01500 and T02 is 00500 then the IHD will show 02000. If a supplier asks for a reading on switching, then both the T01 and T02 index readings should be given.

[Deleted User]

Does anyone know if the 10 Consumption reading and IHD are m3? Also does this reading already have the Volume Correction calculated in value (1.02264)?

See my post above. Where are you getting the 10 reading from? For a GWi gas meter, the 02 reading is the only reading that the supplier is interested in. I have a GWi gas meter; sadly, the gas box meter door is frozen shut so I cannot look - is the 10 reading in kWh?  If so, it is there for information only.

RareRabbit

Dolor 

Referring to my IHD meter readings for Gas, in the menu I can see the a reading eg 2099 I think this is the same as 10 Consumption and 02 now. 

Do you know why our meter had two different readings before on 02 and 10 and why would they both be the same now? 

I have two electric rates too day and night but I think these are ok, I can look into them.

[Deleted User]

RareRabbit said:

Dolor 

Referring to my IHD meter readings for Gas, in the menu I can see the a reading eg 2099 I think this is the same as 10 Consumption and 02 now. 

Do you know why our meter had two different readings before on 02 and 10 and why would they both be the same now? 

I have two electric rates too day and night but I think these are ok, I can look into them.

Arguably, the biggest mistake that smart meter manufacturers made was giving users unrestricted access to meter menus. As far as I ascertain, the value 10(A) Consumption Vb is used when a cyclic test of the meter is carried out in a test laboratory.

I repeat: the only reading that you should be interested in is 02(A). These meters are sold internationally and some countries have time-of-use gas tariffs. The IHD shows the sum of 02 to 05(A).

Edit: (more info)

Vb = converted volume with reference to tb

tb = base temperature in °C,

and so on. Too much knowledge is a dangerous thing. I would love to be a fly on the wall if anyone tries discussing this with CS.