Electricity meter is still recording units even after I've turned the electricity off at the mains

EssexHebridean

Gerry1 said:

EssexHebridean said:

ahh how we miss (former forum member) Dolor at times like this.  Paging @BarelySentientAI who may have some info, also @MeteredOut who had a similar issue with a gas meter and may know how the processes work in practice. 

Sadly, BarelySentientAI has also been banned... 😨

Resisting the temptation to say something that will see me join them... 

Good advice given already OP - I would suggest the video as stated - starting with you showing flipping the mains switch to "off", then continue videoing as you walk to the meter to show it still recording use - although if filming with a phone the anti-flicker settings may interfere with it capturing the red light flashing, the changing digits should still show up. 

Document everything - the date you made the formal complaint, the dates you chase things up,. Download and retain all bills showing the increased use. If you speak with anyone on the phone note their name and the department they are in. 
Good luck - and please do let us know how things unfold. 

[Deleted User]

Thank you for all the comments and advice. @MeteredOut: To pick up on your point of not letting the supplier take the meter away, this would normally be the logical thing to do. However, they could subject it to a test which uses a different load to that of the house which may give inconclusive results or they may say it is OK despite any test results they may get. We are going to get a new smart meter fitted and give them results over a period of time to prove the error. Just to recap, we do not trust them to "independently" test the meter and give the correct results. @MattMattMattUK: We did correctly isolate the meter by switching off the mains switch in the consumer unit for over an hour. The LED was still flashing at a quicker rate and it clocked 1 unit in 1 hour with no load connected. @Scot_39: We have analysed our previous 3 years bills (not estimated) which clearly shows in the last year, a doubling of usage which has been a gradual increase and therefore not noticed until the latest bill.

[Deleted User]

We have informed our energy supplier, the CAB and the energy supplier's extra help department in Exeter of this issue, but despite providing them with all the evidence we have put together, they remain silent. 

MattMattMattUK

[Deleted User] said:

Thank you for all the comments and advice. @MeteredOut: To pick up on your point of not letting the supplier take the meter away, this would normally be the logical thing to do. However, they could subject it to a test which uses a different load to that of the house which may give inconclusive results or they may say it is OK despite any test results they may get. We are going to get a new smart meter fitted and give them results over a period of time to prove the error. Just to recap, we do not trust them to "independently" test the meter and give the correct results. @MattMattMattUK: We did correctly isolate the meter by switching off the mains switch in the consumer unit for over an hour. The LED was still flashing at a quicker rate and it clocked 1 unit in 1 hour with no load connected. @Scot_39: We have analysed our previous 3 years bills (not estimated) which clearly shows in the last year, a doubling of usage which has been a gradual increase and therefore not noticed until the latest bill.

[Deleted User] said:

We have informed our energy supplier, the CAB and the energy supplier's extra help department in Exeter of this issue, but despite providing them with all the evidence we have put together, they remain silent. 

Raise a formal complaint and say you want to have an independent meter inspection. 

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head

MattMattMattUK said:

Raise a formal complaint and say you want to have an independent meter inspection.

Do this OP, the official complaint process should be detailed on your supplier's website.

Random thought, are you sure you only have the 1 fuse board? 

Also we have a large fuse before the meter (which I don't think is allowed to be touched) which when pulled is 100% cutting all electric to the house, don't know if this is a common thing to have?

Gerry1

[Deleted User] said:

We are going to get a new smart meter fitted and give them results over a period of time to prove the error.

Nooooo.... !

Unfortunately that won't prove anything at all.  It will merely show that for any of 1000 reasons you're using less electricity than before.  No-one in authority is likely to give a refund for previous use: it would set an unacceptable precedent and open the floodgates.  Anyone could claim if the weather then became a bit warmer, they'd discovered a light left on in the loft, a tubular heater left on in a shed or garage, a leaking hot tap had been fixed, an old inefficient freezer with dodgy door seals had been replaced...

Not casting aspersions on you, but it would also allow deliberate fraud.  Anyone could inflate their consumption before a meter change by taking long hot electric showers, using fan heaters to top up gas central heating, or just leaving the windows open.

Other than an independent lab test of the removed meter, the only acceptable proof would be to postpone the smart meter installation and install a check meter wired in series downstream from the suspect meter.  If your supplier won't play ball, pay an electrician to do this.  It's relatively straight forward and inexpensive and if it proves your case you should be able to claim for expenses and compo.

Gerry1

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head said:

Also we have a large fuse before the meter (which I don't think is allowed to be touched) which when pulled is 100% cutting all electric to the house, don't know if this is a common thing to have?

Correct, it's absolutely standard.

MeteredOut

[Deleted User] said:

Thank you for all the comments and advice. @MeteredOut: To pick up on your point of not letting the supplier take the meter away, this would normally be the logical thing to do. However, they could subject it to a test which uses a different load to that of the house which may give inconclusive results or they may say it is OK despite any test results they may get. We are going to get a new smart meter fitted and give them results over a period of time to prove the error. Just to recap, we do not trust them to "independently" test the meter and give the correct results. @MattMattMattUK: We did correctly isolate the meter by switching off the mains switch in the consumer unit for over an hour. The LED was still flashing at a quicker rate and it clocked 1 unit in 1 hour with no load connected. @Scot_39: We have analysed our previous 3 years bills (not estimated) which clearly shows in the last year, a doubling of usage which has been a gradual increase and therefore not noticed until the latest bill.

I agree with @Gerry1's response - this is a dangerous thing to do. In my case, the gas meter was independently tested and found to be faulty (picture in the thread I linked to above), and the Energy Ombudsman's response was based on that. The Ombudsman is not going to accept a "we tested it and it was ok" from the supplier; they will expect the report from the external test company.

Using less energy now does not mean the supplier has to agree that you used less energy previously. 

I'd strongly recommend going to the Ombudsman, and pushing for a check meter to sit alongside your existing meter, not a replacement of the existing meter.

dunstonh

tim_p said:

Gerry1 said:

Sadly, BarelySentientAI has also been banned... 😨

What do you have to do / say to get banned?  Presumably it wasn’t for something said here?

Often, you have to do very little.     The most common reason for banning long term members is that someone targets them to wind them up and eventually they snap with a response and the board bans the long term member for their response whilst the one that did the winding up gets away with it.

Gerry1

Ist Apr 2025,

Dear AcklingtonLass,

Thank you for your great feedback about halving your electricity bills !

We're all absolutely thrilled that your new smart meter and IHD are saving you sooooo much money !  As millions of our ecstatic customers have discovered, by watching your IHD you can soon save a King's ransom.

In fact, one of our happy smart customers sold her TV and put her shiny new IHD where it used to be because she finds it much more interesting to watch.  She's now taking a worldwide luxury cruise thanks to the mahoosive savings she's made since that wonderful day she had her smart meter installed !

Just keep watching your IHD all the time and feel so good as you watch your savings piling up minute by minute...

Love and Money,

The MegaLeccy Team