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Meter Certification - What you need to know!

  • 3 September 2019
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Meter Certification - What you need to know!
Userlevel 7

Updated on 21/08/23 by Abby_OVO

 

Did you know your meters have a ‘best-before’ date?

 

Meter certification may sound a bit dull, but it’s an important part of making sure we’re able to measure your energy usage accurately. Here’s what you need to know - especially if we’ve let you know that your meter needs to be replaced soon.

 

Every meter has a certification


When it was installed your meter was certified - giving it a date at which it will need to be replaced. Most people don’t realise that their meter even has this certification, as the information isn’t always written on the meter itself. You can read more about the technicalities behind the certification process on this government website.

 

 

Your meter’s certification will expire after a set amount of time


Your meter’s certification can last between 10 and 40 years. The information about the expiration date of your meter is held by the energy industry - who’ll let us know when it’s nearly expired.  As your energy supplier, we’ll then be in touch to let you know.

If you haven’t had your meter replaced and the certification expires, the meter is still safe. However it may mean that it’s running slightly too fast or too slow and therefore you may end up being charged the wrong amount for your energy usage.

 

 

Getting your meter replaced when it’s certification runs out

 

As we can’t recertify your meter, when it’s current certification ends we’ll get in touch to arrange a meter replacement, free of charge. We replace expired meters with new, next-generation smart ones also known as SMETS2. Traditional meters aren’t available in the UK as they are no longer being manufactured, which is why we will replace your expired meter with a smart one.

 

These second-generation smart meters allow you to switch suppliers without needing a meter upgrade. They can also help you track your usage - by sending us daily or even half-hourly usage data which you can view on the ‘Usage’ page of your online account or OVO app (download for Android or iOS). Check out the great guides below for more details on the benefits:

 

 

OVO member but not got a smart meter yet? - Book today!

 

Interested but not yet an OVO member? - Check out our plans!

 


3 replies

Ovo keep pestering me to have a smart meter due to a “certification” issue with my present traditional “dumb” meter, and that the traditional dumb meters are no longer available in the UK, so how come a rellie with SO Energy has just had their dumb meter replaced with a traditonal  type as in attached pic , a Landis branded meter !

 

Userlevel 7
Badge +1

Hi, I’m a forum volunteer here.

That shouldn’t be possible…

The meter you have shown is is 9 years old, meaning it is about to reach End of Service Life and be up for Recertification - at which point it must be replaced. Given the stocks of traditional meters have basically depleted to zero at this point, there’s a 99% chance the replacement will be Smart.

What SO Energy have done there isn’t something I can comment on easily as I don’t know why they’d done that. I’d suggest raising a complaint with them about it.

However, if OVO is warning you about a certification issue, there’s a 100% chance it really is a case of the current meter has reached end of service life and genuinely does need replacing. To avoid issues with it going more and more inaccurate, I too recommend having it replaced.

Aghh, you were spot on, i was given duff info by my rellie...seems it was installed yonks ago, apologies for  posting without double checking the facts 🫣🫣

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