Octopus: Action: Your meter is approaching its use-by date
I apologize if this is similar to previous posts. If necessary please move this post for me, thank you. I received an email from Octopus Energy asking me to book an appointment to have Smart Meters fitted because my electricity meter is approaching its use-by date. "Your meter is approaching the end of its certification period and needs to be replaced".
I am a very satisfied Octopus Energy customer and I have always been extremely pleased with the service they provide. I really don't want Smart Meters unless, as a last resort, they become essential. I'll be grateful for any help in doing my best not to have Smart Meters fitted. If I ignore the email and do not book an appointment what is likely to happen, please? I normally would never ignore a communication.
As far as I know my electricity meter is still working perfectly and I have no problems with my gas meter. Although I don't want to be a difficult customer, I really am most eager to avoid having smart meters fitted until, there is no option other than to accept them and there is no alternative.
I'll be grateful for any advice as to how I should deal with this. Thank you for any replies.
I am a very satisfied Octopus Energy customer and I have always been extremely pleased with the service they provide. I really don't want Smart Meters unless, as a last resort, they become essential. I'll be grateful for any help in doing my best not to have Smart Meters fitted. If I ignore the email and do not book an appointment what is likely to happen, please? I normally would never ignore a communication.
As far as I know my electricity meter is still working perfectly and I have no problems with my gas meter. Although I don't want to be a difficult customer, I really am most eager to avoid having smart meters fitted until, there is no option other than to accept them and there is no alternative.
I'll be grateful for any advice as to how I should deal with this. Thank you for any replies.
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Energy Used Electricity only. Hoping to get down to 6000 kWh a year. 2022 worked out at 6234 kWh a year in a 4/5 bedroom detached house EPC high B. Designed not retro-fitted ASHP Mitsubishi Ecodan, under floor heating ground floor, radiators 1st floor. Multi-fuel burner in lounge.
Dyslexia sufferer don't be too harsh if I get things a bit topsy turdy.
Maybe they are but I guess they are of an age where they might not be?
Apart from some catastrophic failure what would indicate to you that they are no longer accurately recording your usage?
I have just had a refurbished "Dumb" meter fitted.
(I.e. an old style non-smart meter that has been refurbished.)
I wonder if you contacted them and said you would prefer to have this, what they would say?
I understand that, in time, Smart Meters will be essential but I don't want to change from a system I know and understand. I'm wary of them and feel unnerved by the number of problems associated with them. Perhaps, in time, they will be fewer problems associated with them but, for now, I really don't feel comfortable about having to accept them.
If my electric meter is not proved to be faulty, can I be forced to have Electric and Gas Smart Meters installed?
I strongly suspect they have installation targets they would like to meet.
Before anybody says that taking that line, I would still be using log tables and slide rules!......
Please see this reply to a review on Trustpilot for British Gas.
Reply from British Gas
A day agoHi Laura. As your smart meter is an old generation it'll need to be enrolled onto the newest smart systems to function again. As it's such an old generation there's a chance the enrolment won't work and an exchange will be necessary. Our Smart Team are currently working through a backlog of devices that need to be updated onto the newest system, which they're hoping to clear by the end of this years first quarter. If after they've tried to update your meters onto the system it doesn't work, they will contact you to advise about an exchange. Thanks, Heidi
I am firmly with Crimson60. Wait as long as possible for sophisticated technology.
They are meters that measure and record your usage, nothing more if that is all you want, you can read the display just like your current meter and submit readings to your supplier just as you do now.
I think you can even ask for them to be installed in `dumb mode?
But it's just like a modern mobile telephone, they do lots of things but if you just want to make and receive calls on them, you can.
I think if your supplier wants to change the meters and only fit smart meters then there really isn't anything to argue about, the meters are not ours and the supplier has the right to install what they deem necessary.
Some people will tell you you don't have to have them if you don't want but I'll leave them to explain how they think you can do this as it's beyond me why anybody wouldn't want a more modern and functional piece of equipment installed at their house at no cost to them.