Should probably be in the "Really really mundane" thread. I know that they get bad press but has anyone had a smart meter fitted and it worked well for them? Our electricity bills have mysteriously doubled in the last year and it would be a good start to finding out what is going on.
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Cissy Strut is as smart as it gets.
In all seriousness, they seem designed to overcharge. We've not been badgered to have an electricity one fitted - mainly because our landlord told them to fuck off, which was nice - but we did have Thames Water round insisting we have one for the water supply. So what we did was pretend we didn't know where the stopcock is and it all went away (and, to be fair, you could never fit a meter where the stopcock is anyway).
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- Oct 2011
- 26984
- Cambridgeshire
- Ipswich (convert)
- Those chocolate-coated ring-shaped ones you get at Christmas
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-49730361
I've declined whenever it's been offered.
First, I quite like going out to the two meters and doing the reading reach month. We have the 'proper' black and red numeral cylinders on them and I don't want that being taken away and replaced with some display that doesn't belong to me.
Secondly, having a smart meter which communicates directly to the energy company means they can cut you off remotely with a click. Whereas to cut someone off who has a proper meter they have to send someone out to deal with hardware.
Edit - so I think of them as a way of handing over control and information about your energy from you to your supplier. Naturally the suppliers claim that this is an advantage to you.
Last edited by Kevin S; 19-09-2019, 08:08.
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It depends. Mostly, so far, it means a meter designed to communicate directly with one specific power supply company, which then becomes unsmart (what is appallingly called "dumb" in this vile disablist culture we inhabit) as soon as you change supply company.
Billions have been spent installing these and billions will be spent replacing them. This cost falls ultimately on consumers, of course.
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Originally posted by Toby Gymshorts View PostCissy Strut is as smart as it gets.
In all seriousness, they seem designed to overcharge. We've not been badgered to have an electricity one fitted - mainly because our landlord told them to fuck off, which was nice - but we did have Thames Water round insisting we have one for the water supply. So what we did was pretend we didn't know where the stopcock is and it all went away (and, to be fair, you could never fit a meter where the stopcock is anyway).
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I had one fitted recently. Stops bulb hassling me for meter readings and me having to squeeze into the under stairs cupboard to get the lecky one.
If I'd have known how Orwellian it was, it might have given me pause. Knowing how much gas I'm using is far more useful to an authoritarian regime than me carrying around a fully traceable pocket computer that I do most of my shopping and Internet browsing on...
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- Mar 2008
- 3353
- at the edge of the sea
- Plymouth Argyle, Plymouth Gladiators, Seattle Mariners
- cream crackers spread with nutella
I got paid £30 not to have a smart meter.
Last year I though oh, ok maybe I should get one so made the appointment for the fitter to come over. Mrs Greenlander wasn't such a fan mainly because of the obsolesce thing and she loves changing supplier every few years. Thing was when the day came we were in the midst of the two days a decade of snow flurries we get in Plymouth when the town grinds to a complete halt so they never came.
Two weeks later I got a letter and £30 for the inconvenience of a missed appointment. I haven't bothered rearranging despite numerous calls.
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Originally posted by Ginger Yellow View PostYour power supplier knowing how much power you've used is an Orwellian nightmare?
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Originally posted by Walt Flanagans Dog View Post
I got a water meter in earlier this year and it immediately halved my monthly water bill based on the expected usage I put on the website when I applied. And then after the first reading they reduced it further. It had the further advantage of them confirming the location of the stopcock in my house, which I was largely oblivious to after eight years in the house (I knew where there was a valve of some sort, but presumed that regulated the supply into the extension rather than coming into the house). So I'm on board.
The gas and electric, on the other hand, are on old-fashioned meters with rotating dials and such, and are as fascinating as you like.
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I'm a surprising guy.
It took me ages to persuade Thames Water to bill us after we moved. They kept calling me wanting to come round to look but wouldn't say why. Eventually they confessed it was about installing a meter, so I nixed that.Last edited by DCI Harry Batt; 19-09-2019, 17:13.
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Originally posted by Toby Gymshorts View Post
Bear in mind our (London) water rates - as we don't have a meter - are still calculated on the rateable value of our landlord's property. As it was in 1992. So we pay next to nowt and I'd quite like to keep it that way..
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Cautionary tale from the related topic of smart cameras.
(there is a link to the original research, but it is in Dutch)
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