Your electricity meter is past its best before date: Power firms claim old models go off like veg

Vitality suppliers are utilizing a scare tactic to ‘trick’ households into getting a wise meter, Cash Mail can reveal.

Houses throughout the nation have been receiving letters warning them that their outdated meter has handed its ‘best-before’ date – and evaluating it to rotting meals.

Octopus Vitality has been bombarding prospects who shouldn’t have a wise meter with emails over the previous two months, which learn: ‘Your electrical energy meter has now reached the tip of its certification interval… We’re required by legislation underneath the Electrical energy Act 1989 to get your meter changed…’

For these mystified by what this ‘certification interval’ means, the Octopus web site goes on to state: ‘Similar to meals, every electrical energy meter is given a ‘best-before’ date when manufactured.’

However electrician Mike Redfern-Jones, of Denbigh, North Wales, who has been becoming power meters for greater than 30 years, says: ‘They’re tricking folks into switching through the use of meals comparability scare techniques that make completely no sense.

‘We’re not speaking a couple of string of sausages or sliced bread, however a sturdy piece of apparatus that may final for many years with none bother.’

He provides: ‘Conventional meters simply by no means appear to go flawed. The one drawback we’ve had is with the primary technology of sensible meters which have stopped working as a result of the know-how was rolled out earlier than it was prepared.’

In response to the Meals Requirements Company, ‘finest earlier than’ pertains to high quality. ‘After the best-before date listed on a product, the meals can be suitable for eating however might not be at its finest,’ it says.

That is separate to the ‘use-by’ date, which is to do with meals security. The company makes it clear that it doesn’t examine meals high quality to that {of electrical} items.

When requested whether or not outdated conventional meters have a best-before date, power regulator Ofgem couldn’t give a transparent reply.

The primary variations of so-called sensible meters have been broadly criticised for going ‘dumb’ when you attempt to change provider. 

That is after they can nonetheless report consumption however cannot ship computerized readings to suppliers. About one in ten sensible meters fitted doesn’t work correctly, in accordance with authorities figures.

Two thirds of the 30million houses in Britain have thus far agreed to have sensible meters put in following a £224million promoting marketing campaign. 

They present households’ power consumption in actual time, which implies meter readings are not required and there’s a decrease threat of shock payments.

The Authorities needs each house in Britain to have this new studying gear put in and requires suppliers to supply it to their prospects.

Emma Bradford, 49, from Rutland, was shocked to be taught that her outdated meter was previous its best-before date in a letter she obtained from her provider Octopus.

Ms Bradford, a technical assist supervisor, says she requested Octopus to supply proof about why her outdated meter was supposedly outdated. 

The power agency backed down and admitted she didn’t have to vary the meter if she did not need to, she says.

Ms Bradford provides: ‘Clearly, they aren’t making an attempt to avoid wasting us cash – they only need to make extra for themselves. We’re being pressured on to sensible meters in order that suppliers can learn our hourly use to allow them to cost variable tariffs, with greater levies in busy instances.’

Switched off: Emma Bradford obtained a letter from Octopus Vitality claiming her meter was outdated and had to get replaced. However the firm backed down when she requested for proof

Mr Redfern-Jones believes a key cause suppliers are so eager for folks to have a wise meter is as a result of it saves them cash. 

They don’t have to ship out workers to learn sensible meters as it’s completed by way of distant alerts despatched from the unit. 

Trade physique Sensible Vitality GB admits ‘time-of-use’ tariffs are a part of the enchantment of sensible meters, as they permit suppliers to see how a lot power you’re utilizing each half hour. With this info, they will cost totally different tariffs at totally different instances of the day.

Not all suppliers have embraced this, however amongst people who have is Octopus. Its ‘Agile’ service fees something from lower than 3p per kilowatt hour (kWh) throughout the evening to £1 per kWh within the night, when persons are more than likely to make use of energy.

One other Octopus buyer, a 68-year-old from Rochdale in Larger Manchester who requested to not be named, was advised her electrical meter certification interval had ended earlier this yr – regardless of her meter solely being put in in 2017.

Mike Kelly, 82, of Bury, Larger Manchester, has obtained emails from Octopus pressuring him to modify to a wise meter. 

The retired firm supervisor says: ‘Making an attempt to inform us a meter has a sell-by date like rotting meals is just ridiculous. We’re being handled like fools.’

Octopus is just not the one provider that has adopted such techniques to get prospects to modify. Eon was pressured to apologise to prospects two years in the past after wrongly claiming older meters weren’t protected and had to get replaced with sensible ones.

Scottish Vitality prospects have additionally contacted Cash Mail saying the provider has advised them their meters want changing. 

Dumb meters: About one in ten sensible meters fitted doesn’t work correctly, in accordance with Authorities figures

Sarah Lloyd, 58, of Derby, says: ‘Scottish Vitality will simply not go away me alone – having emailed, texted, written letters and even knocked on my door this yr demanding I change to a wise meter.’

The civil servant, whose title has been modified, provides: ‘The most recent trick, which began in the summertime, is claiming my conventional meter is coming to the tip of its life.’

Ofgem was unable to make clear whether or not the Electrical energy Act 1989 requires power meters to get replaced by sensible meters. 

As a substitute, the watchdog steered contacting the Division for Vitality Safety and Web Zero for particulars. This division steered that one more Authorities division was accountable – the Workplace for Product Security and Requirements.

A Authorities spokesman says: ‘Electrical energy meters want changing after their certification interval, often a interval of between ten and 20 years… Sensible meters are provided because the default the place a meter wants changing, as they assist households handle their power use and get monetary savings on their payments – however aren’t obligatory and a buyer can refuse to have one put in at any time.’

An Octopus Vitality spokesman says: ‘When prospects strategy the expiration date of their conventional meter, we’re required by Ofgem to contact them and supply a alternative.

‘We are able to set up a brand new meter with out the ‘communications hub’ if the client requests it. This arrange permits the sensible meter to operate in ‘dumb mode’.’

An Ofgem spokesman stated: ‘Suppliers are answerable for offering meters that supply the perfect final result for customers. We anticipate them to strike a stability between prospects’ particular person circumstances, security and performance points.’

toby.walne@dailymail.co.uk