Meter end of life - Eon - SMET2?

Raxiel · 20 March 2019 at 12:12PM

gorners wrote: »

Who let you out? Absolute nonsense, every single word of that.

He's not wrong though. If they want to replace the meter because it's EOL, they have the right to do so. That right pre-dates smart meters and has nothing to do with the roll-out.

Allowing the change is a pre-requisite of continued supply. If you don't want to have a smart meter you can request that. But depending on what stocks they have they may choose to fit one with the comms disabled, but you don't get to dictate which model of meter gets installed. Matelodave was being a bit tongue in cheek about having the supply removed, but that is the only alternative.

The reality is, you could probably stall them and keep putting off the exchange until a SMETS 2 is certain (depending on where you are in the country it sounds like that may already be the case in some places). Switching would probably delay things too. The new supplier would also have an obligation to get the meter replaced but some may be keener than others.

Ultimately though, it's at the suppliers discretion how heavy handed they get, not the customers.

Former_E.ON_Company_Representative:_Malc · 20 March 2019 at 1:25PM

gorners wrote: »

Hi all,

Been refusing a smart meter for years with various companies including my current supplier Eon, but now I’m told my meter is at the end of life and needs to be replaced for safety.

No doubt they’ll want to install a smart meter by default - I’m happy to do this if it’s the 2nd gen. does anyone know of Eon are at the point where this is the default or can be requested? If not then will just request a like for like replacement.

gorners wrote: »

Thanks for the link, had not seen this. I will of course ask the question but looking at previous posts it seems sometimes that have not been able to confirm which version until they actual come to your house with the meter.

gorners wrote: »

Wow, that looks like something from the mid-2000s tech. Will look lovely at the side of the Nest.

Thanks for the info - will see what I can get out of them up front, can’t see me wanting that in the house.

Hello gorners and I've just posted about similar issues on a separate thread at the following link.

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.php?p=75605909&highlight=eon#post75605909

We're looking to fit SMETS2 smart meters wherever possible. There are exceptions as I explained.

With your meter coming to the end of its guaranteed life, provided the property is suitable, we'll offer to fit smart meters. We would like this to be SMETS2. If not, we'll offer to fit SMETS1 and then do a remote upgrade later this year so it can be managed in the same way as SMETS2. This includes staying smart after a change of supplier.

Smart meters are optional and you can reject them. If you do go for a smart meter and we can fit SMETS2, they'll either be a Landis & Gyr or EDMI.

Hope this explains gorners. Let me know if you need any more details as happy to help.

Malc

dogshome · 20 March 2019 at 2:57PM

But is the meter really past it's use-by date ?

Suppliers are desperate to install Smart meters 'cos they have quotas to meet, and there have been many posts on this site of customers being told " The Govt says" and "You must have"

True that the suppliers have the power to change dangerous meters, even by forced entry if need be, but there are OP's on here that say they still have Dial meters that are at least 40 years old.
Check online - It could be a porkie excuse to fill the quota.

Raxiel · 20 March 2019 at 3:27PM

dogshome wrote: »

But is the meter really past it's use-by date ?

Suppliers are desperate to install Smart meters 'cos they have quotas to meet, and there have been many posts on this site of customers being told " The Govt says" and "You must have"

True that the suppliers have the power to change dangerous meters, even by forced entry if need be, but there are OP's on here that say they still have Dial meters that are at least 40 years old.
Check online - It could be a porkie excuse to fill the quota.

A 40 year old meter may have been recertified more than once during its life. It's also possible that particuarly old meters have just slipped through the cracks. Certification isn't just a safety check, it's also intended to confirm the meter is reading accurately.

JohnB47 · 20 March 2019 at 3:37PM

So how long should a gas or electricity meter actually last, provided it doesn't go faulty?

Are there any facts out there about when a meter 'should' be changed?

matelodave · 20 March 2019 at 4:05PM

does this help - not really because it's down to manufacturer to submit meters for certification although I guess most energy suppliers wont want to be changing or re-certifying meters every 10 years.

"Certification periods are allocated by Safety & Standards and are restricted to 10 years for newly approved induction meters and for periods of between 10 and 20 years for static meters. Certification periods greater than 10 years (for static meters) are subject to the submission and validation of a component reliability model based on the Siemens Norm SN29500."

However I'd guess they can decide when they want to swap out their meters to ensure that they remain within the certification period even if that was well within the legal certification period. You don't really have much say in the matter. As I said above it's their meter so they can decide when to change it.

Much in the same way as you can have your car MOT'd whenever you feel the need - you just have to make sure that the next time is done within the validity period.

I'm guessing that if a meter has expired you could request a change but not insist that you keep it going until it does expire.

Tammydreaper · 20 March 2019 at 4:06PM

Meters end of life: how long is end of life in years?

matelodave · 20 March 2019 at 4:37PM

Whenever someone deems they need changing.

You could find out what the meter certification specified when it was new, but that doesn't mean that the customer (in this case the energy supplier/dno) has to keep it going until it expires.

They can change it when they want to and I'm sure most suppliers will have a programme to change meters when it's convenient to them rather than waiting until the very end of the certification period and then randomly changing meters all over the place

If it was certified for 20 years, he could decide that he wanted to change them at 5, 10, 15 or even on the last day when it runs out. I'd guess that there are quite a few meters out there which are well past their certification dates.

You as the end customer have no control except to ask for an out of date meter to be changed.

Tammydreaper · 20 March 2019 at 5:00PM

[FONT=&quot]If a customer is switching suppliers a lot, the chances are they could miss out in getting them replaced, especially if they are switchers with smaller companies.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]I have had my current meters for over 30 years and they have never been changed. They have not been read in years either.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Do the smaller companies have meter readers? I doubt it.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Bulb have just told me they are rolling out Smet2 meters later this year, but I won’t hold my breath.[/FONT]

Uxb1 · 20 March 2019 at 6:14PM

dogshome wrote: »

but there are OP's on here that say they still have Dial meters that are at least 40 years old.
Check online - It could be a porkie excuse to fill the quota.

I have a dial meter.
My family has lived here for a very long time indeed
I absolutely know this electric meter has been here since November 1990 when it was exchanged for the old one.
(I think this was done when the local electric supply was totally rejigged and the old overhead lines were replaced with "ABC" lines and all the houses got new fuse cutouts as well)

Meter end of life - Eon - SMET2?

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