HOUSEHOLDS are being urged to make a key check ahead of energy bills rising next week.
Millions of homes are using smart meters to send information about their energy usage automatically to their energy supplier.
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But around one in 10 meters are thought to be not working and stuck in “dumb” mode, according to recent data from energy regulator Ofgem.
It means these households could be sending inaccurate readings to their supplier and potentially paying too much.
With the energy price cap rising on April 1, meaning households will be paying more per month.
A typical household’s energy bill will rise by £111 to £1,849 a year if they use electricity and gas and pay by Direct Debit.
So it’s really important to make sure your readings are accurate.
Chris Shaw, chief executive at Utility Bidder, said a faulty smart meter can pose “several dangers”.
Firstly, it could lead to you either being overcharged or undercharged.
He said: “There may also be communication issues with your energy supplier due to the confusing readings of the faulty meter.
“This could then lead to you relying on an estimation from previous bills which could cause frustration and financial concern.”
Mr Shaw also warned there could be privacy issues with a faulty smart meter, as someone could gain unauthorised access to your energy usage data.
Smart meters work by connecting to a secure national smart meter network.
This means they don’t use your WiFi but they can talk to different energy suppliers.
They have an in-home display that updates every 30 minutes for gas and in near real-time for electricity.
The UK Government says smart meters must be officially approved and have their accuracy monitored.
If your bill is higher than expected or you get a bill you weren’t expecting, you should check your smart meter for a fault.
Of course, there can be other reasons your bill ends up higher – but it’s worth ruling out any problems with the meter.
What is a smart meter?
SMART meters are gas and electricity meters that can digitally send readings to your energy supplier.
They show you how much energy you are using in pounds and pence, so can be used to help reduce your energy bill.
Unlike traditional meters, which simply register a running total of energy used, smart meters can record half-hourly price and consumption data and provide automatic meter readings to your energy supplier.
Most homes have two meters, one for gas and one for electricity – both will be replaced with smart meters.
You will also be offered an in-home display to show you the cost and amount of energy you are using at any given time
It will update every 30 minutes for gas and in near real-time for electricity.
How to check your smart meter for faults
Faults are sometimes caused by connectivity issues.
If you see a blank screen on the meter, this may be a sign it’s not working correctly.
You can also check your bill to see if the readings are being sent properly.
Readings on your bill should be marked as “smart”, according to Which?.
But if they’re marked with an “e”, this means they’re an estimated reading.
You can also use Citizens Advice’s smart checker tool to see if your smart meter should work in smart mode.
Bear in mind this won’t tell you if your smart meter is currently sending readings to your supplier.
What should you do if you think your smart meter is faulty?
It’s up to your supplier to make sure your smart meter works properly.
According to trade association Energy UK, suppliers are obligated to fix faulty meters.
Therefore you should contact your supplier in the first instance.
You can request a free independent test of your meter if necessary.
However you may have to pay your supplier for organising it if your meter is found to be working correctly.
If your meter does have a problem, your supplier should fix it within eight weeks.
You can complain to the Energy Ombudsman if they fail to do so.
In the meantime, you should take manual meter readings to keep track of your energy usage.
If you’re renting and your landlord pays the energy bills, you should get in touch with them to say you think the meter might not be working.
They will be responsible for contacting the energy supplier and sorting out the issue.
There’s another key smart meter check you should make
Households are also being told to make another check ahead of the clocks going forward on Sunday.
British Summer Time (BST) officially begins at 1am on Sunday, but smart meters don’t recognise when the clocks go forward as they remain on Coordinated Universal Time (UTC).
Good Energy says that for smart meter users on a single rate tariff, this won’t have any effect on you and your device will continue to work as usual.
However if you’re on a dual rate tariff or time of use meter, you may need to adapt your usage.
This is because these tariffs charge less for energy usage during off-peak hours.
For example, some tariff off-peak hours might be between 12am to 5am UTC.
That means when the clocks change to BST, the off-peak hours will change to 1am to 6am.
They will then change back to 12am to 5am when the clocks go back in the autumn.
You should check with your provider to find out when its off-peak hours are.
Some tariffs also recognise BST and automatically adjust for you so won’t need to adjust your time of usage.
Either way, it’s worth checking.
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