Hello, When moving into a property that already has Gas and Electric Prepayment Energy Meters / key "topped up installed. Can anyone advise how you would go about getting these removed so normal meters can be installed? Will the Energy company that you choose to go with on a price comparison fit new meters? And would this be free? Thanks

Hi all, we were Future Energy customers, before they folded last year. Shortly before the collapse, they fitted our home with smart meters. Now I was never happy with the gas meter and how it didn't fit in the existing box, resulting in the lid being left unlocked and open (see photos). Now we have been moved over to a new supplier (Green Star Energy), I am wondering whether they are liable for rectifying the problem? If not, who is? Thanks,

Hi and thank you for taking the time to read my post, I believe I may have an issue with my Landlord supplied electricity. I am posting here in the hope that you kind folk may give me advice on my maths, assumptions and possible action, The situation: I live in a building that is subdivided into 9 self-contained flats. The Landlord is responsible for paying the electricity bill for the whole building, there is a regular usage meter on the outside that records the usage for the whole building. The Landlord has installed payment meters into each flat, in order to credit these meters we have to purchase £5 disposable cards from the Landlord which are inserted into the meter to credit it. The rates: The meters are currently set to charge 55p for every kWh of electricity used. I do not know what supplier, per unit price or standing charge the Landlord is paying as I have not yet confronted him about this as I would like to make sure I've not made any mistakes or overlooked something. The problem: I believe I am paying over double the price I should based on my usage. I have kept a tally on the amount of cards I have bought over a 3 month period and I have spent £265 on electricity cards. This works out to a usage of about 482 kWh per quarter. If I were getting my electricity directly from a supplier, say British Gas for example, using their Standard Tariff information on their website it quotes 12.28p per kWh with a standing charge of 26.01p per day. A quarter is 91.25 days on average so that's a standing charge of £23.73 per quarter and £59.19 of usage making a total of £82.92 with VAT that comes to £99.50. I figure this means I'm paying roughly 250% more for my electricity than if I were getting it direct. The concessions: Many of the tenants of this building are quite old. They do not use modern devices like computers and the like and I imagine have quite low electricity usage. This being the case, the Landlord would have to increase the price per unit in order to cover the standing charge he is paying. But seeing as I don't actually have the information regarding the other tenants and the Landlord's billing I am only speculating here. In any case this arrangement would be very unfair on a higher user like myself. I also understand that payment meters are generally more expensive than straight billing, but 250% more expensive seems somewhat overkill. Issues: If I confront the Landlord about this, and he is overcharging for profit, he would have been doing this for a long tome and has gotten used to the extra money by now. If I drop this on him and force him to lower the rates on the meters, he is not going to be particularly pleased about it. Yes he may be stealing money from me, but human nature being what it is, he's been doing it so long he probably believes he is entitled to do this. It's going to cause bad blood. Resolutions? Ideally I would like to do away with the Landlord meter and have my electricity supplied directly. I've tried to look into the laws on this but I can't really find anything that is specific or even related to my situation. The only things I tend to get when I do a search is for switching electricity suppliers. Also having the meter reduced to a more reasonable rate, say, 22p per unit would be ok. Or even, I would be willing to pay the landlord a flat fee per month to cover my share of the standing charge and have the meter set to the actual price per unit with VAT that he is paying. What do you think? I am going to ask the Landlord to look at his electricity bill soon. If he does show it to me, then I can explain this issue to him with actual irrefutable numbers and math. But what should I do if he refuses to show it to me? Anyway, thank you again for reading this and thanks in advance for any replies. Regards Col

Selling?they should be fitted free I'd be getting them done Best thing I ever did last year

hi does anyone know much about this, how does it work re switching. apparently some suppliers may or may not accommodate? have read that such (econ 7) meters wld be treated as one and the same re invoicing even though there are 2 meters with different MPAN's. ie one supply charge (not one for each meter), and one rate, for both as if one meter. but, one supplier says that each meter will attract its own supply/standing charge? anyone any info. thanks.

Elderly parents cold called by British Gas and talked into having Smart Meters fitted with the promise that they could then choose to have free energy either on Saturday or Sunday. Meters duly fitted, told by engineer to call to pick their day, only then are they told they can't have the free energy until they set up an online account. Had they been told that from the outset they wouldn't have bothered as they don't have wifi, don't trust online stuff and are probably beyond learning how to do it now anyway. BG have given them £30 for their failure to mention the online requirement, but they're still disappointed.

I moved into a new rental property 5 weeks ago. When I moved in I realised it was a pre-pay meter. I hadn't had one before and immediately called to ask to change to a DD account. I was told I would have to wait a month then have a credit check and then if approved move off. I called today to start that process and whilst I was on the phone the customer service rep performed an Experian credit check and told me I failed and I could not apply again for another 60 days. I logged onto Experian to see my report which is a 989 score out of a possible 999 - an almost perfect excellent rating. It shows a 989 because a couple of months ago I took out a small loan out but I am paying that off as I should and I hope to clear it early in a few months. The only other thing I can think of is it had not updated my electoral register information despite my council telling me on the phone today I am definitely on their list and they have said Experian should update their records this week. So I called British Gas again to enquire further why I had failed their check and they refuse to tell me....well in fact I was told they themselves do not know because she said it was all down to algorithms. Yes computer says no. So, can anyone let me know if British Gas demand a 999 scoring for Experian? And why the do I have to wait 60 days if all it is my electoral registration data had not updated as quickly as it should have? I mean...is that even legal that they force us wait so long? It seems to me just a flimsy excuse to extract more money out of me because of a previous tenant's failure to pay on time. Agh....

My wife arranged a direct debit with a utility company using my personal bank details without my knowledge. She must have done this over the phone using my debit card details. This eventually caused a debt that I wasn't aware of at the time. I have been landed with the debt despite me never having set up any direct debit with the utility company. Shouldn't my wife be liable or the utility company for taking direct debit instructions from a person other than the actual account holder? I think it's identity theft and I should not be held liable for the debt. I thought that unauthorised use of a person's bank details would have been compensated for by the bank or the utility company taking money under an unauthorised direct debit.

I just thought that I'd share that I've been with a company called Utilita for a year now and had their prepayment Smart Meter energy. From the get-go, I've had nothing but great service. The handiness of having an accurate (to the minute) update on what I'm using, how much I've used and how long I've got left before I need to top up has been immense. be warned they don't participate in warm home discount in all cases, but on that note, as the sales person told me that I would get it, they honoured that, apologised for the confusion and sent me a letter as proof of honouring their mistake. Something I've never really seen an energy company do. On top of that, Since moving to them I've had two price decreases, both outside and before the "big 6" decreased their prices and at 2% more than each of their decreases. The only gripe that I have, and a minor one, is that their smart-phone app only deals with payments. It doesn't have any interaction with your energy usage results. Anyhoo, I thought that amidst the gloom and doom of energy I'd share this little gem. Hope this helps others! Cheers, Ade

All, long story short...It looks like npower having been charging me for cubic meters of gas instead of cubic feet, since I joined them in Oct/Nov 2010. They have admitted this to me via telephone and on 7th August I raised a complaint with them. I checked in with them this morning and although it's now over their 4 week turnaround for complaints, all they can tell me is it should be concluded in the next 2 - 3 weeks. How long does it take to recalculate a bill ??? Am I right in saying that I can go to ofgem after 8 weeks to complain about their service? However, what worries me most is the possibility of a big bill at the end of their re-calculations. As far as I can see, a cubic meter is much larger than a cubic foot. So, if my meter has clicked round 1000 digits in cubic feet and they have billed me for 1000 cubic meters, this then means that they have over charged me? Can anyone confirm my logic, or suggest what I should do now? thanks in advance, pandhandj

Energy giants are set to use digital smart meters as a way to double the cost of power when families need it most — adding nearly £60 a year to the average bill. A Money Mail investigation has discovered Britain’s leading power firms are expected to introduce tariffs that charge more at peak times when they roll out new electronic meters which monitor how much energy you use by the second. It means electricity and gas used in the evenings could cost 99 per cent more than at other times — penalising everyone cooking family meals, watching popular TV shows and heating their homes on chilly winter evenings. Higher charges will also apply in the morning when people are most likely to be taking baths and showers and having the central heating on. Money Mail has discovered that British Gas has already trialled a tariff that charges more at peak times. Read more: http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/bills/article-3322658/The-great-smart-meter-rip-UK-energy-giants-use-devices-DOUBLE-cost-power-need-most.html#ixzz3sVOOlCex

For the full story : - http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-32876422

More than a million pre-payment gas customers have been overcharged because their meters are faulty, the industry has admitted. About 1.5 million meters have not been working properly since they were installed, some as long ago as 2007. The affected meters were set up incorrectly, meaning they miscalculate the price of gas and overcharge customers. Energy suppliers are contacting customers with the faulty meter settings to arrange a refund http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-30214471

Received notification through the post today from my electricity supplier SSE informing me that I had been selected to be one of the first to have my meter replaced by a smart meter. This was despite me having informed them 18 months ago that under no circumstances would I entertain having one fitted. The publicity makes a lot of all the benefits to customers and suppliers, and used phrases such as the Government has said that ALL homes will be fitted with meters where possible by 2020. What was more concerning was that when I contacted the call centre listed to reaffirm my intention to opt out of the scheme, (which they did have a record of), the call centre operator still reiterated that I would have to have one by 2020. I have logged a complaint with SSE concerning the false information being provided and the lack of any mention that acceptance of these devices is not mandatory. I'm all for anyone who wants one taking advantage of the offer should they believe that in their circumstances that to have one would be beneficial, but DON'T lie to customers if they wish to reserve the right to decline.

Hi, I am wanting to change from using prepayment meters for my gas and electric and going onto DD. British Gas have done a credit check on me and it failed, he told me to maybe check with Expedia to see if my credit file is wrong. I know it's right as I have a couple of CCJs. Am I now stuck on prepayment meters for ever, I wouldn't mind but they were already in the house when I moved in and when I asked for them to be removed they said there was a charge for removing them. I refused to pay it as I never had them installed. Topping up my gas is costing me about £40 week with British Gas and my electric is £20, it's crippling me. I've started to sit with candles on( which is nice ) and I have my gas on for 2 hours in the morning and the same on an evening. And help advice would be good, thanks in advance.

This has been going on for 7 years apparently. Full story.... http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-30214471

Smart meters widely used in Spain can be hacked to under-report energy use, security researchers have found. Poorly protected credentials inside the devices could let attackers take control over the gadgets, warn the researchers. The utility that deployed the meters is now improving the devices' security to help protect its network. The discovery comes as one security expert warns some terror groups may attack critical infrastructure systems. Many utility companies are installing smart meters to help customers monitor and manage their power use and help them be more energy efficient. "We took them apart to see how they work," said independent researcher Javier Vidal who, with Alberto Illera, found the flaws in the smart meters. "We suspected there could be some issues with them and we wanted to check. "We feared the security would be easy to break and we confirmed that," he told the BBC. Network nodes BBC

Beleaguered energy customers face a £215 bill for the installation of smart meters that will only save them around 3 per cent on their average annual bill by 2030, according to the public spending watchdog. The Commons public accounts select committee estimated the smart meter rollout will cost £10.6 billion for the actual meters, with households forking out up to £11 running costs a year, plus the £215 cost of installing the meter. According to the committee, consumers will save just 2 per cent on an average annual bill of £1,328 until 2020, rising to £43 a year, or 3 per cent, by 2030. Read more: http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/bills/article-2749473/Energy-customers-face-215-bill-smart-meters-save-3-cent-bills-2030-says-watchdog.html#ixzz3CuknxR3h

Thousands of SSE customers across the UK could be in line for a refund, after the energy supplier admitted there is a fault with some of its meters. As many as 16,000 customers on its Economy 10 (E10) tariff may have been overcharged for their electricity consumption for years. SSE has now vowed to get in touch with all customers who may have been affected to check their meters. If you have the fault, SSE will repair or replace the meter and recalculate your charges to make sure you are not out of pocket. The E10 tariff provides households with ten hours of off-peak electricity, split into three blocks over 24 hours. During these off-peak times, households are charged a lower rate for their heating and hot water. But a batch of meters have a manufacturing fault, which means if there is a power cut the meter clock moves back by an hour when the power comes back on again. This would only happen when the clock is programmed to switch between GMT and BST and the power cut happens in winter time. For customers who are affected, the fault could mean that if they time their electricity consumption to benefit from off-peak rates, they may have paid more than they ought. Read more: http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/bills/article-2606778/16-000-SSE-customers-line-refund-energy-supplier-admits-meters-faulty.html#ixzz2z9ooXcos

I currently have two prepayment meters with Southern Electric (gas/elec). As I seem to be paying over the odds compared to normal meters with direct debit (eg, paying 13.99p per unit for elec, and the gas has a daily standing charge), I'd like to come off these meters. SE have quoted me a total of £100 to change the meters, and mentioned I would first have to go through a credit check. Has anyone been able to get this fee waived by SE? I've heard other companies have offered to remove the units for free (as long as you stick to a contract).

http://uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/meter-clocks-set-to-wrong-time-could-mean-millions-overpay-energy-bills-105148366.html

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?398052-Bailiff-Warrant-to-force-entry-amp-fit-prepayent-meters-searched-house-and-injured-animal&p=4302934#post4302934

Hi guys, We're moving from a modern property to an older property without a water metre. We'd like to keep it that way but as I understand it, the water company can and most probably will, make us have a water meter when the account name is changed to ours. Are there any exceptions exclusions to this? and when we do change the account into our name, is there time limit for them to notify us that they'd like us to have a meter? As always, many thanks in advance

Hi CAggers I've been battling with Southern Water for some time now (since last Oct) as when they installed meters in the other properties around me, they had to drill holes in the pavement outside my property. THeir pneumatic hammers and their vibrations knocked quite a few plates, jars and ornaments off the dresser which subsequently broke. 1) I reported it to them and they sent out a Customer Liaison Manager (Steve Manning) which showed up, had a quick chat at the gate despite being invited in to investigate further he left his card and promised to call me back in a week. This never happened, despite calling and leaving various voicemails. 2) I then contacted southern water again, and was told, they wouldn't compensate for the damages. A general template-styled letter was sent out, with no further information. 3) Contacted them repeatedly to get through to someone, and they promised another Area Manager would sewing by (this is over 6 weeks later) 4) THe Manager showed up unannounced (while I was asleep thanks to nightshift), I spoke with her briefly at the door, invited her in to show her the dresser, the plates which I LEFT there to show them where they fell off from (as well as the jars), but she declined and left. 5) Souther water then wrote another standard letter stating that they have decided not to compensate. (Just before Christmas) 6) After CHristmas, I wrote 3 x letters, each 14 days apart, asking them for an exact breakdown as to what the findings were. ---The answer was 'that I didn't seem interested in speaking to the manager when she showed up'. (Bear in mind she got me up after a long nightshift). 7) Volleyed several phone calls and letters and eventually got through to someone who said they'd help me, this is now in March and since then my kitchen has been rearranged as I've started to replater it and no longer have insecure items on the wall unit (despite that never being a problem in the last 3 years of living here). 8) I sent pictures of the dresser, PUT all the plates back in the positions they were in so they could see what it was like, took photos of the distance from where they were using the pneumatics (5 meters from the wall the dresser is mounted on). 9) I get this letter today: What can I do about this? It's VERY evident that it was their fault as I had left for the day, when I came back there was carnage in my kitchen as everything had fallen off. Furthermore, my neighbour had pointed out that both 5 and 10 meters in the other direction, all of the unripe pears were knocked off of the pear trees. Cheers, A

Hi, Just wondering if anyone else has had this problem. I moved in to a rented property, which has got two pay as you go meters (gas and elec). These were installed by Southern Electric because the previous tenant got in to substantial arrears. However, I am stuck with the meters or limited to a few suppliers that use meters, consequently any sort of choice regarding who supplies my elec and/or gas is severely limited....[edit] If I want to be able to have a 'choice', I HAVE TO PAY to have the meters removed. ME !!!! Not the previous tenant who run up the debt in the first place..... the landlord isn't expected to pay for the removal either. From the website of Southern Electric Our credit meters give you more choice with the different tariffs that are available. And you can get our biggest discount when you pay your bills my monthly Direct Debit and choose paperless billing If you’d like us to remove your pay as you go meter, we’ll charge you £52 for the work involved. No BIG DISCOUNT for people in my position though, through no fault of their own, only a cost of £104 (2 meters) to have them taken out Any ideas anyone ?