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Energy Suppliers, smart meters and switching?

narabdela said:
On the subject of switching, give Bulb Energy a wide berth. They’re the most inept shower of useless incompetents that it’s ever been my misfortune to encounter. :mad:
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Hmmm, Together Energy take some beating in the ineptitude stakes in my experience - an unbelievably bad company to deal with. Avoid.
 
My gas meter is at the back of the house at ground level (on a three-story house) and I reckon the chances of getting a signal to the central collection facility for smart meters is almost zero. I don't get a mobile phone signal there, although the rest of the house is OK.

I'm now switching to Octopus - they don't insist on a smart meter and their CEO's blog on their website is very open about the installation problems they've had. But I could have saved about another £200 a year with a supplier who did insist I agree to have smart meters installed. As it is I'm saving about £400 a year on my current tariff - why I've stuck with Scottish Power so long I'm not sure, basically they were supplier from when house was built and I was too lazy to do the research.
 
Taff63 said:
Hmmm, Together Energy take some beating in the ineptitude stakes in my experience - an unbelievably bad company to deal with. Avoid.
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British Gas too - had to involve the ombudsman eventually when we were with them. Absolutely avoid .
 
At the advent there were issues with switching where the meter became un-smart, reverting to a regular meter because the new supplier wasn’t set up to take it on as smart.
They still have their problems. My in-laws are waiting for their third in six months (because the in-room displays stop working so they report the fact). It must be costing a fortune.
 
I just look for the best deal without one, no problems so far. Last reviewed in October.
 
I recently switched to E-On. Despite me ticking the "no" box for smart meters, they kept pestering me for a date to get one fitted. I phoned them & said no thanks. When they asked why not, I said that I switch suppliers every year or two & until there's a "one smart meter fits all suppliers" situation, I'll stick with my present ones. They agreed that was sensible, saying the latest ones are better but still not universal yet.
 
Recently switched to Simplicity, whilst they are cheap getting a smart meter fitted is nigh on impossible and probably not worth it as they are using the gen1 meters.
 
I've been with Octopus for 2 or 3 years and find them very good. Around a year ago I signed up to Look After my Bills, and they've never been able, so far, to find me a better deal.
We've got an old-fashioned meter, so I get to spin the Octopus wheel of fortune each month when I send in the readings, though I've never won anything! As far as I understand it, for a so-called smart meter to work, it needs a mobile phone signal. As we have no signal of any description from any of the networks, that'll be a non-starter, then.
 
When enough meters get fitted they will switch to variable pricing so morning and evening prices will be higher, making you pay more.

I hate the latest ad with the children thanking you for fitting one and sugesting its a way to save energy, total bovine waste.

Pete
 
Pete MB&D said:
When enough meters get fitted they will switch to variable pricing so morning and evening prices will be higher, making you pay more.

I hate the latest ad with the children thanking you for fitting one and sugesting its a way to save energy, total bovine waste.

Pete
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Yeah, be suspicious. I wouldn't have one.

If you want to know your appliance consumption you can get a device which fits around your meter tails, then just go round the house switching appliances of and on and noting how hungry they are. If you can't read your meter.
Incidentally, if you get an appointment to fit a smart meter foisted on you, you don't have to have one, indeed if they want to fit any new meter you can insist on them testing the old one, and if it performs to its original spec, you are not required to change. Or so I believe.
 
hifinutt said:
not tried to change suppliers . i just use Uswitch who have cheaper deals with scottish power that are not even on scottish powers website !!!
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I just did this last night because of your post Phil. Well, Martin Lewis had a big hand in encouraging me by bringing it to my attention. ;) Hopefully your trust is not misplaced, but I guess we're both going to find out, and at least sticking with the same supplier should rule out some of the switching problems.
 
Nothing to do with smart meters but.

I changed supplier to Scottish power 3 months ago and signed up for an internet account, email and password supplied by me, had a request by email for meter readings at the weekend, tried to send them but couldn't remember the password so I tried to reset it. First enter email address, they don't recognise it ( remember they sent an email to me ) ok, maybe I didn't register so I'd better register and I start to do so, enter the acc. no. Only to be told that the account is already set up. OK I'll try to phone...... after the usual multi choise press this, press that I get we are busy enter phone number press #, speak name press #, we will call you back in 1.5 -2 hours. Now I don't know abou the rest of you but if someone is going to call back I expect someone on the end of the phone, no, another flipping automated press this press the, on the end of the line.

Still not managed to get in touch.

Had another email today ( remember the one they don't recognise) telling me that since I hadn't responded to the first email I would get an estimated bill. If that wasn't what I wanted to phone them?
 
had a lot of experience with scottish power and eventually they do sort things out . at one point they did drive me nuts though , even sending me texts to pay on christmas day !! i rather like the scottish accent that answers

hellooo , one moment please.....one moment please .......

i stay with them and just switch with uswitch , so glad the far north has done this . they don`t like it becuase the rates with scottish power are quite a bit cheaper on there
 
Amber Audio said:
Maybe useful to someone - Cheap Energy Club

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/cheapenergyclub
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I used this for about 3 years. Now gone off-piste myself.

Once you get in amongst the cheaper deals the diiference between them becomes vanishingly small. I am not going to change supplier for a putative £50 saving - when actually the margin of error in annual consumption is much greater than that.

So now I will only switch if the saving starts to look useful. Am with OVO now and at the end of the 2 year deal that Cheap Energy Club found, I have rolled over into a new OVO deal that is fractionally different than the last one. Customer service has been brilliant.
 
Do these smart meters offer anything useful to the end user? I get that it automatically sends usage up to the company, but beyond that does it do anything these devices that wrap round the incoming mains cannot?

I would expect an app for my phone, usage by hour, peek times etc but I cannot get a definitive answer all I can see online is primitive LCD displays in a shit plastic case, showing current usage. I had that tech like 10 years ago, OWL something or other it was called. Utterly pointless it was.
 
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