Help - need a Smart meter for new electric cars but supplier won't give me a date to get one!

kev1969

I've recently purchased 2 electric cars and would like to take advantage of the cheap electric through the night to charge them.
Unfortunately, my supplier (Scottish Power) will not help and just tell me we are not rolling out to your area right now. (Aberdeenshire)
It's currently costing about £500 per month to charge them at full rate and that's before the 40% rise.
Is there anything I can do?  Any way of finding out who is installing meters in my areas so I could join them?

MattMattMattUK

kev1969 said:

I've recently purchased 2 electric cars and would like to take advantage of the cheap electric through the night to charge them.
Unfortunately, my supplier (Scottish Power) will not help and just tell me we are not rolling out to your area right now. (Aberdeenshire)
It's currently costing about £500 per month to charge them at full rate and that's before the 40% rise.
Is there anything I can do?  Any way of finding out who is installing meters in my areas so I could join them?

Are you really doing 6-8k miles a month in them?

Do you have any alternative source of charging, I mention that as an example because several of the sites I work at, including the one I have my office at all offer free EV charging and this can be the case with many employers. 

In terms of getting a smart meter, you can ask around and see if anyone else has one to find out if they have been rolled out in your area or if they are waiting for an upgrade to the comms network. Potentially looking at companies who offer EV tariffs as well as generally they will install one as part of switching over, if they offer EV tariffs then they will require smart meters, but they may not offer those tariffs at your address if they are unable to fit a meter in your area. 

[Deleted User]

kev1969 said:

It's currently costing about £500 per month to charge them at full rate and that's before the 40% rise.
Is there anything I can do?  Any way of finding out who is installing meters in my areas so I could join them?

It is possible that this is a network rather than supplier issue. Smart meters in Scotland connect to the DCC network using UHF radio frequencies rather than the mobile network. There have been issues getting planning permission for relay masts etc. It might be worth talking to your neighbours to see if they have had smart meters fitted.