Smart Meter = smart move?

[APOLLO]

12 minutes ago, SHMD said:

 

I'm an engineer and I put the customer first!

 

Kev.

 

So was I for 39 years in the gas industry. Boy has it changed from The North Western Gas Board !!!!!

 

Total corporate crap these days.

 

Brit15

 

 

[57xx]

  

10 hours ago, hayfield said:

Its a known fact that they allow users to access the best rates

 

The "best rates" are only there to coerce people over. Once everyone is on them, where will the best rates be then?

[ess1uk]

The peaks are peaks for a reason, it’s when people get home, it’s usually dark and people want to eat.

so we should all sit in the dark and eat at midnight?

[Michael Hodgson]

1 hour ago, ess1uk said:

The peaks are peaks for a reason, it’s when people get home, it’s usually dark and people want to eat.

so we should all sit in the dark and eat at midnight?

 

No, we should do what they do on the Costa Brava. 

Sleep all day and drink all night.

With a slogan like that, I could  win a general election  😄

[57xx]

28 minutes ago, Michael Hodgson said:

 

No, we should do what they do on the Costa Brava. 

Sleep all day and drink all night.

With a slogan like that, I could  win a general election  😄

 

You got my vote!

[Michael Hodgson]

34 minutes ago, 57xx said:

 

You got my vote!

Thanks - but it might be close thing if I'm up against Liz Truss' tax policies 😆

[ERIC ALLTORQUE]

Just noticed this,i wish i had never had them done six weeks ago,gas still not working and electricity meter loose on board,its a scam as you dont get cheaper rates,just an unskilled qualified dude messing in your house. I would not care as every 28th they got the readings,leave well alone and dont fix whats not broke.

[APOLLO]

3 hours ago, ERIC ALLTORQUE said:

Just noticed this,i wish i had never had them done six weeks ago,gas still not working and electricity meter loose on board,its a scam as you dont get cheaper rates,just an unskilled qualified dude messing in your house. I would not care as every 28th they got the readings,leave well alone and dont fix whats not broke.

 

Take photos and email your supplier.

 

Brit15

[ERIC ALLTORQUE]

1 hour ago, APOLLO said:

 

Take photos and email your supplier.

 

Brit15

Have done and they are coming Dec 6th to have another go,should be sorted first time and checked before they leave,this was never the case of the skilled world,its the college course and screwdriver gang.The more i mention this the more you here of people having issues,i should have known better.

[hayfield]

On 25/11/2022 at 11:15, Reorte said:

. They don't actually do anything at all useful in their own right.

 

You missed the point totally, if smart meters were of no use commercial entities would not install them.

 

The fact that you perceive that they do nothing does not mean they have no use to others. Some fear we will be charged more for peak hour usage solely down to smart meters will happen anyway, to be quite factual, we are all paying for that anyway but the price is smoothed out during the day.  I have just been in a trial where we are paid not to use as much during peak times, a bit of fun and as an individual an insignificant amount saved, but as part of 300,000 group a massive saving was made over an hour period

 

I am on the other side of the coin, my smart meter has saved me money, simply by the fact it allows me to access a product not available to those without a smart meter. The product pays nearly 3 times what its nearest competitor pays, six times the amount EDF pays !!!  I also have real time data the next day, most do not require/want it. There is an old saying of "knowing the price of everything and the value of nothing".  Being aware of the value of things has reduced my import of power from 3400 kwh pa to just over 2000kwh pa. Smart meters played a part in this.  

[hayfield]

On 25/11/2022 at 10:53, APOLLO said:

Well we all (who are not on existing fixed rate tariffs) are all on the same price cap tariffs for both gas and electricity, with only small regional variations, so in the foreseeable future you can rule out smart meters allowing cheaper tariffs. There is (according to Martin Lewis on TV the other day) not one fixed term rate available in the UK that is under the price cap.

 

I honestly do not know or am even able to predict the future re this.

 

Most consumers also do not sell back electricity from home generation, nice to do if you can though. Most can't afford the capital upfront costs. 

 

Unfortunately engineers and customer oriented management have all been replaced with money oriented "suits" who have absolutely no regards for anything or anyone else.

 

Brit15

 

 

 

Martin Lewis is also on record saying smart meters as well as paying by DDI allows you access to products with better rates whether fixed or variable. Temporary these schemes may be the same or similar to those who do not have smart meters, I have not bothered checking. 

 

Its a great pity there are not grants/schemes for those on low incomes to access solar power

[APOLLO]

3 minutes ago, hayfield said:

 

Martin Lewis is also on record saying smart meters as well as paying by DDI allows you access to products with better rates whether fixed or variable. Temporary these schemes may be the same or similar to those who do not have smart meters, I have not bothered checking. 

 

Its a great pity there are not grants/schemes for those on low incomes to access solar power

 

There are NO better tariffs  than price cap tariffs available at the moment, and how long temporary (price cap prices) tariffs will last is anyone's guess. They WILL go up next April or so, already announced.

 

DO NOT have smart meters fitted until the pricing situation becomes clearer, i.e. energy prices fall significantly - the energy companies will have smart meter customers by the short and curlies when (soon) they introduce peak time tariffs. Those on old, non smart meters will benefit under this scenario (for a while at least).

 

Brit15

 

[hayfield]

On 25/11/2022 at 22:21, 57xx said:

  

 

The "best rates" are only there to coerce people over. Once everyone is on them, where will the best rates be then?

 

Well perhaps that's you are correct in a lot of cases but consumers are getting more savey about this tactic and doing something about it

 

A plug for Octopus, last September (after winning the Which best provider for the 5th year running) were offering a marked leading rate for exporting power at 5.5p per kwh, in feb/mar I got an email stating from tomorrow the tariff is going up to 7.5p. then about a month or so ago another email increasing the tariff to 15p the next day. Look at all the other energy providers the max they have increased rates over the past 18mths is by 2p per kwh. not every company is the same    

[hayfield]

5 minutes ago, APOLLO said:

 

There are NO better tariffs  than price cap tariffs available at the moment, and how long temporary (price cap prices) tariffs will last is anyone's guess. They WILL go up next April or so, already announced.

 

DO NOT have smart meters fitted until the pricing situation becomes clearer, i.e. energy prices fall significantly - the energy companies will have smart meter customers by the short and curlies when (soon) they introduce peak time tariffs. Those on old, non smart meters will benefit under this scenario (for a while at least).

 

Brit15

 

 

We have peak times rates at the moment, its just its smoothed out over the 24 hour period, anything we can do to reduce the demand at peak hours will be beneficial to all in the long term.

 

I am sorry but I am getting a far better deal than I would have got with any other energy company, when I joined a smart meter was required. I agree that most suppliers are not competitive at the moment.

Edited November 28, 2022 by hayfield

[APOLLO]

1 minute ago, hayfield said:

 

I am sorry but I am getting a far better deal than I would have got with any other energy company, when I joined a smart meter was required. I agree that most suppliers are not compedative

 

 Am I right in saying you export energy to the grid, so smart meters are a requirement. For the millions like me who do not export power smart meters are a financial hazard at this current (!!!) time.

 

You are correct in the fact that more people (who can afford to) need to generate and export.

 

As an aside I'm with EDF and not pleased with various aspects (billing mainly), looking at changing to Octopus and was told not possible at the moment.

 

Brit15

[rdeas]

21 minutes ago, APOLLO said:

 

 Am I right in saying you export energy to the grid, so smart meters are a requirement. For the millions like me who do not export power smart meters are a financial hazard at this current (!!!) time.

 

You are correct in the fact that more people (who can afford to) need to generate and export.

 

As an aside I'm with EDF and not pleased with various aspects (billing mainly), looking at changing to Octopus and was told not possible at the moment.

 

Brit15

Hi Brit15

 

You don't need a smart meter to export energy to the grid.

 

 We have been exporting and receiving our FIT payments for 10 years, firstly with and old mechanical meter (which ran backwards and was soon replaced) and laterly with a standard electronic meter.

 

Richard D

[hayfield]

17 minutes ago, APOLLO said:

 

 Am I right in saying you export energy to the grid, so smart meters are a requirement. For the millions like me who do not export power smart meters are a financial hazard at this current (!!!) time.

 

You are correct in the fact that more people (who can afford to) need to generate and export.

 

As an aside I'm with EDF and not pleased with various aspects (billing mainly), looking at changing to Octopus and was told not possible at the moment.

 

Brit15

 

My sister moved house this year and was told that by Octopus, but after a couple of months they let here on board. Octopus are trialling quite a few things and you will need the dreaded smart meter to get the most benefit from the company. I just cannot see how they are a financial hazard. Plus billing with Octopus (with smart meters) is simply no effort at all and daily updated

 

If the industry is going to change billing it will effect all despite which ever meter you have

 

Yes I do have solar panels, when I bought them they were much cheaper than I thought, and with my bank paying low interest rates the money I spent would have dropped in spendable value by over 11%, let alone getting twice the benefits than illustrated due to the soaring prices

[Reorte]

3 hours ago, hayfield said:

 

You missed the point totally, if smart meters were of no use commercial entities would not install them.

No, not missed the point. I don't regard commercial entities managing to come up with new ways of screwing over customers as a benefit. Although there's also an element of "well it's digital so it's got to be better innit?" about them, the ludicrous "make things pointlessly high tech" nonsense that plagues us these days. Commercial entities aren't always that bright and can be a sucker for such things (got enough of that where I work).

 

Quote

I am on the other side of the coin, my smart meter has saved me money, simply by the fact it allows me to access a product not available to those without a smart meter.

Case in point, it's just an excuse to pressure people in to getting them. You really think you'll benefit in the long run, rather than just from hooking you in initially?

Edited November 28, 2022 by Reorte

[hayfield]

56 minutes ago, Reorte said:

No, not missed the point. I don't regard commercial entities managing to come up with new ways of screwing over customers as a benefit. Although there's also an element of "well it's digital so it's got to be better innit?" about them, the ludicrous "make things pointlessly high tech" nonsense that plagues us these days. Commercial entities aren't always that bright and can be a sucker for such things (got enough of that where I work).

 

Case in point, it's just an excuse to pressure people in to getting them. You really think you'll benefit in the long run, rather than just from hooking you in initially?

 

Please explain to me exactly how I have been screwed for having a smart meter ?

 

Secondly please explain how do you know I was ever  pressured into having a smart meter?

 

Thirdly if technology saves me having to read then send my meter readings especially when one of my meters is outside the house on a freezing night its beneficial to my health

 

I can now see where you are coming from, its not the smart meters that irks you but large commercial organisations. To some degree I agree with you, but rather than whinge, I acted and moved to Octopus Energy, they seem to have a far more ethical and customer focused ethos. And a smart meter both saves me time and money

 

My main driver is to reduce the cost of the energy I use, if using a company with green energy ethics assists me all well and good.

 

On Sky news the National Grid is asking some of its customers who volunteered to reduce their energy use during peak time tomorrow night, this is a scheme I have decided to partake in and have done for the past two Tuesday nights at peak time. The first one saved me three quarters of my daily electric bill, not had the results yet of the second one yet. We used electricity just changed our routine for an hour .

[Reorte]

44 minutes ago, hayfield said:

 

Please explain to me exactly how I have been screwed for having a smart meter ?

 

Secondly please explain how do you know I was ever  pressured into having a smart meter?

As I said there are no actual benefits it can provide you, other than what has been deliberately contrived to get you to shift. The pressure is by waving around tempting initial offers to coerce people in to switching.

 

Is taking the occasional meter reading really that much of a problem? I struggle to see how it could be more than a "too trivial to care about" thing, it's less hassle than putting the bins out.  I appreciate that it might be a problem for a small number of people, meter readers did the job there perfectly well though.

 

Edited November 28, 2022 by Reorte

[hayfield]

27 minutes ago, Reorte said:

As I said there are no actual benefits it can provide you, other than what has been deliberately contrived to get you to shift. The pressure is by waving around tempting initial offers to coerce people in to switching.

 

Is taking the occasional meter reading really that much of a problem? I struggle to see how it could be more than a "too trivial to care about" thing, it's less hassle than putting the bins out.  I appreciate that it might be a problem for a small number of people, meter readers did the job there perfectly well though.

 

 

 

I was given no tempting offer or threats to install one, however they contacted me treating me as an adult and explained the features which I thought was a very good option, long before I chose to have solar panels. Now you have given me an idea "Smart waste bins" it will be cold and wet when we put them out tonight and a local fox has learnt how to open the food caddy!!!  Smart bins would be a real winner😇

 

What is the problem with having an automated system ? was it not the Rev Denny (?) who made the automated Crispin for Buckingham when his son went to uni. Simply the smart meter is no bother. When my thermostat broke rather than pay through the nose and wait for weeks for it to be replaced by British Gas. A new Tado smart thermostat was quicker (2 days), cheaper and took less than an hour to fit and another to program. Our heating is on (during the times we want) when we are in and off when we are out, no changing the central heating settings when going on holidays and saves energy when we are out and when doors and windows are wide open, The Tado system (cheaper than a new British Gas fitting a new dumb one) has paid for itself through its various energy saving functions. 

 

When double glazing was first introduced we were told we all would become ill as there would be no fresh air, now we are told we will get ill if we live in a drafty house. Progress is not always bad

 

As little as 18mths ago my son in law said we were daft having solar panels. He now has a hybrid car and is ordering solar panels. 

[Reorte]

I think we'd better give this one a rest before we get the thread closed.

[APOLLO]

49 minutes ago, Reorte said:

Is taking the occasional meter reading really that much of a problem? I struggle to see how it could be more than a "too trivial to care about" thing, it's less hassle than putting the bins out.  I appreciate that it might be a problem for a small number of people, meter readers did the job there perfectly well though.

 

 

As I said earlier I am with EDF and am NOT pleased. I came off a fixed rate in May and straight onto the price cap. I have been sending readings monthly (gas and electric) all this year but my twice yearly bill received in November shows estimated readings for the tariff rise on the 1st October. A waste of time sending readings.

 

The final readings on this bill were requested and supplied, and correctly shown on the bill. The estimate at tariff change wasn't a mile out though they still put up my DD by just under £100 - which MAY cover my winter use I will see. They also refunded me £219, and I'm still £200 in credit - work that one out (I can't!!).

 

Yes a smart meter would help in this matter, may have to have them some day.

 

And why is electricity charged on the most expensive generation method (currently gas) when, at most, approx 50% is generated by gas ?. The whole industry (in which I worked from 1969 to 2009) is now corrupt and evil to the core, aided and abetted by No 10 & co. 

 

What do the French pay to EDF ?

 

Brit15

 

 

[APOLLO]

6 minutes ago, Reorte said:

I think we'd better give this one a rest before we get the thread closed.

 

Why ? The banter is quite informative and friendly.

 

Brit15

[30801]

1 hour ago, Reorte said:

Is taking the occasional meter reading really that much of a problem?

 

The water company seem happy enough to still send meter readers round. I've never been asked to read mine.

In fact round here the meters are under silly little plastic manhole covers that break when a car goes over them. They're obliged to replace them within four hours as it's a safety issue. Must cost them a fortune.