Smart Meters? Yay or nay

I had to read the meter every month at my rental cottage, it was set about ten foot up above the kitchen door. It involved teetering dangerously on the top rung of the ladder with my mobile phone to photograph the meter, so I could read it from the photo.

I'm really happy to find smart meters at my new purchase, they take the electric/gas readings remotely, I don't have to do anything. Seems I'm also on a water meter - and I've just heard my usage merits a £3 per month reduction.

What's not to love!

We had smart meters fitted in last house and wouldn't hesitate to get them again. Much better than getting down on hands knees trying to read the old type. The thing that told me how much I was using putting kettle on soon got put back in its box. What I really liked was the direct debit evened out (dual fuel). In fact it dropped considerably after 12 months as they knew exactly how much we were using. There is nothing not to like about smart meters and as soon as we move into new home we will ask for one to be installed.

Thanks for the link. I hadn't thought about looking at that forum. Good to read different points of view.

I cannot see any negatives to having one. It just means you don't have to read the meter.

My mum's is great, because her poor eyesight meant she struggled to read the old meter, and I had to remind her to do it every month too (then she had to relay it to me so I could enter it on line). Now, neither of us has to do anything other than check the account occasionally to make sure nothing looks amiss.

Her first meter was not compatible with her next supplier, but the new company soon fitted a new one for her.
That said, I didn't change her supplier again when the contract ended, because she couldn't face any more hassle, even though the meter she has now should still work if she changes again.
Luckily, a new contract with them wasn't much more than the cheapest deals available on the comparison sites, and worth it for her peace of mind.

The in-house display soon ended up in a drawer though, because it was giving her the impression that she was using far more energy than was actually the case, which worried her.

Quite often, the best deals require your agreement to have a smart meter installed.
Personally, I have had three such deals so far but still no smart meter. When the first company sent someone to fit one, they found that there wasn't enough space, and Western Power were supposed to come to see to that. That was over two years ago, and we are still waiting!

We’ve recently had a smart meter fitted and the gadget is tucked away out of sight but dh can check if he wants to! I was always forgetting to read the meter so that isn’t an issue any more. The meter stays with the property even if you change supplier. I do think they help suppliers monitor usage overall rather than spy on individuals. I don’t have a problem with this, they have to respond to power requirements at various times of the day and if this helps by providing more detailed information so be it. It helps all of us in the end.

I have a smart meter. There are various advantages and you do not have to use the gadget which tells you how much electricity you’re using to boil the kettle etc. Mine is somewhere in its box under the stairs, never used.
Surveys have shown they make no long-term difference to individual consumption.

I had smart meters at my last house, though the gas one did not work as the signal was poor where it was. I had them as soon as I could and would like them here but they are not available.
Smart meters mean you don't have to read the meters. I could not reach them at my last house and they are difficult here. I cannot understand how to press the various buttons to reach the correct screen on the electric one here and am unable to send a correct reading. Smart meters would solve the problem of having estimated bills. I don't understand why people don't like them.

Brilliant if they work! The gas one never worked. When we contacted the supplier, they said the technician couldn’t fit it because we had asbestos in the garage.
1. We didn’t have asbestos
2. It was already fitted...it just didn’t work!
We contacted Ofgem, who agreed the work wasn’t carried out properly, and told our supplier to fix it. We went on a list, and then covid struck.
In the end we changed suppliers, and we’re now back to reading meters ourselves. The electric one would have worked, but of course we changed suppliers.
I’m sure they’re great if they work. The same as anything I suppose.

Here’s a recent thread. HTH.

www.gransnet.com/forums/technology/1296786-Smart-meters-are-they-being-forced-on-us