Eon insisting on replacing my E7 meter

CJScat

Hi when moving into my house E7 was already in place. I would prefer a single rate because apart from the fridge,the freezer and our phones we don't use electricity over night. 
Eon have contacted me to say that old indoor meters like mine have to be replaced as soon as possible.  Also to insist I need a smart meter. They want me to have the engineer visit to fit these before the end of the month.
I said if they have to replace my meter then I want the new one to be a single rate meter.
They say that a single rate meter would cost me just over £70.That I have no choice but to replace the old E7 for an up-to-date E7 meter. 
It seems unreasonable when this is an opportunity to have the tariff better suited for my needs. 
I asked if the day and night rates could combine to make a single rate, he said no.
Would it be worth me moving to a different provider? Would I hit the same stumbling block?

Brie

First time I've heard of someone having to pay to have any meter installed.  I would double check this.  Maybe what you need to do is change tariff first and then getting a meter installed?

mmmmikey

I know from my own experience that both EDF and Octopus will offer you a single rate tariff on an E7 meter - not sure about other providers. It might be easiest to get the smart meter installed first and then change supplier. It only took me a few days to change to Octopus with an E7 smart meter.

dunstonh

Eon have contacted me to say that old indoor meters like mine have to be replaced as soon as possible.

If your meter is life expired (or expiring) then it is normal to be contacted to replace it.

 Also to insist I need a smart meter.

Which is all they install nowadays unless justified reason to not.   However, nothing wrong with a smart meter.

I said if they have to replace my meter then I want the new one to be a single rate meter.

smart meters do both but this will require a tariff change, which is easy enough.

They say that a single rate meter would cost me just over £70.That I have no choice but to replace the old E7 for an up-to-date E7 meter. 

That is wrong.  The same smart meters do both.

I asked if the day and night rates could combine to make a single rate, he said no.

Yes they can and virtually all suppliers will allow it.   You keep the dual readings but the single rate tarrif is applied to both.


What you need to do is change the tariff first to single rate, with the existing supplier.   Then, let the meter engineer come out and let him decide how he wants to configure it after you have explained that you are on a single rate tariff.

Raxiel

E.On will also allow consumers with E7 meters to pay a single rate by giving them a tariff that charges the same for both the day and night periods.

I don't know why they wouldn't suggest that when asked about it, but then their demands of payment to change the meter type at exchange seem pretty unreasonable too.

[Deleted User]

If a meter is end-of-life, then suppliers can fit a smart meter without the homeowner’s permission. However, if the homeowner doesn’t want a smart meter and the supplier still has analogue meters that it could fit then the Government agreed that a meter change charge can be raised. It this the possible area of confusion?

Scot_39

Changing the meter type - purely for a billing reason - would be seen perhaps as a user requested change. And the phone OP might just have been reading from a standard charge list.  In theory they would then have to update the national meter database and modify MPAN numbering - e.g. the MTC part.

None of which the OP needs.

An e7 dual rate meter obviously can be physically different - as would typically support load switching (5 high amperage connections, or 4 high amperage connections plus realy contact driving for external switching relay) - for meter timed supply switching in an old legacy e7 installation without timers on NSH and HW immersion.  (Ironically I suspect making them more expensive)

The OP doesn't make clear how his existing E7 metering is configured - i.e. if has separate time switched consumer unit and internal wiring etc.

But any new smart meter could in theory be software reconfigured for flat rate - or as they used to for old analogue or pre smart digital (which seemed to have a very short lifespan with EOn - they ripped mine out at about 2 years old) - both register's billed at single rate.

Suspect thing to do is let them fit a Smart E7 meter - then get them to bill on a single rate rather than time of use tariff like e7.

EOn tend to regularly offer me that option (for my smart smets1 generation e10 meter - in the summer months - when not using enough off peak heating ) so see no reason they wouldn't for a modern e7 - and if they don't other's will.

macman

Get a smart meter fitted FOC, then immediately request a switch to a single rate tariff, which can then be done remotely.

CJScat

Tahnk you all. 
I don't have an issue having a smart meter fitted in fact waited in twice last year for the engineer who didn't show on both occaisins. 
Maybe the person I spoke to was having a bad day, he was adamant that it wasn't possible to configure or combine to acheive a single rate.
I explained I had seen on a Martin Lewis show that it was possible he got little short with me .

[Deleted User]

CJScat said:

Tahnk you all. 
I don't have an issue having a smart meter fitted in fact waited in twice last year for the engineer who didn't show on both occaisins. 
Maybe the person I spoke to was having a bad day, he was adamant that it wasn't possible to configure or combine to acheive a single rate.
I explained I had seen on a Martin Lewis show that it was possible he got little short with me .

All smart meters have FOUR registers/indexes. A standard smart meter can be configured to two registers - one for peak and the other for offpeak. For a standard tariff, a single register is used.

What a standard smart meter will not do is switch circuits. Some homes, for example, have a separate circuit for storage heaters. There are smart meters available that can cope with dual circuits but not all suppliers, as yet, fit them.

brewerdave

OP - Presumably you don't have night storage heaters but how is your hot water supplied ? Do you have an immersion heater operating on the E7 circuits ?