THTC / Separate Radio Teleswitch and Meter- Can I get a smart meter?

Hey @SunSurg,

Unfortunately there isn’t any further updates on this. But as soon as there is, we’ll update advice on all the THTC Forum Topics. 

Much as I anticipated. In the meantime, who do I contact to establish how many properties in my immediate vicinity are on smart meters?

No-one that I can think of unfortunately.

Just adding a reply here as I'm in the same position, 2 mpans, 3 meters, property in Shetland. 

I'm getting the electrics rejigged to feed them all through the night electric meter and I've asked OVO what the procedure is to decommission the redundant meters (either physically or even just as part of the account) so I'm free to choose a single meter supplier as I'm replacing the storage heaters with A2A.

OVO have no idea of their smart meter THTC  plans or schedule or any way to help me and I'm not happy that any work to make the houses heating system more efficient is driven by OVO project timescales. I've started a case with Ofgem to hopefully help put some more pressure on OVO. 

Will update with any progress I make.

I read somewhere that OVO cannot yet install a smart meter to replace what we have, namely a standard meter and also an RTS meter, if the customer lives in the Scottish Highlands, as we do. Does anyone know if this is still true?

Hi @JohnMcD ,

I can try to advise, but I need to see what meters you’ve got first. Please post photos of them.

Thanks

Delighted to read that you are involving Ofgem. I think I shall do that as well. OVO are not interested in the small number of customers with “exotic meters”, only an overall plan which has now been knocked back 2 years and will not answer every user. 

Ofgem will not punish OVO in relation to this matter. Period.

It’s an industry wide issue and wouldn’t be right to whack a supplier who never wanted to support THTC in the first place. OVO only supports it at all because they absorbed tons of SSE customers with it.

Be patient, they are working on a solution. You cannot rush these things...

I'm not interested in punishing OVO, I just want Ofgem to keep the pressure on OVO and understand the impact it's having on customers, I'm effectively locked into OVO and my freedom to choose another (cheaper) supplier is in their hands, this isn't how a competitive energy market is supposed to work! I'm happy to fund the work myself but would like OVO to make a process available to move me to a single mpan account.

There won’t be any pressure from Ofgem directed at OVO specifically. More pressure will NOT help and definitely won’t have any productive results. And most definitely… It will NOT speed up any Smart Meter based solutions. Whether you like it or not, you just have to be patient - this stuff cannot be rushed as it takes time to get it right.

I’m pretty much the only customer who has - to date - been allowed to set eyes on the in-progress prototype Smart Meter based THTC solutions that OVO is working on. I was granted this privilege in November 2022 when OVO invited me down to their Bristol HQ for the day. It’s one of the perks of being a Forum Volunteer - we get to do this stuff from time to time. With full access to the Smart Meter Lab and internal experts, I got to see exactly what’s being developed. It’s under NDA until it gets publicly announced so I can’t reveal the exact details but I can say this much. It’ll most likely be a single meter capable of controlling the switching locally even if Comms drop out for some reason. It’d also be able to have switching times configured remotely if needed - but ultimately the meter itself would be capable of doing the heavy lifting on a day-to-day basis.

I am not aware of any other supplier being this far advanced in the R&D for the RTS Service replacements (especially for THTC), so in some ways you’re actually in a good position to still be with OVO.

Ofgem is well aware of the situation. Rather than putting pressure on OVO, it’s actually the other way round in a way - OVO has been putting pressure on Ofgem about how some of this stuff will ultimately work. I just happen to be someone who’s… Very well informed… Despite never being in the energy industry nor working for Ofgem. When it comes to OVO’s side, it’s one of those cases where it’s not what you know, but who you know - that’s how I get the most accurate information.

I’m sorry to say this, but I’m very, very well known for telling you not the answer that you might want to hear, but I instead give you the answer that just tells the true story like it is even if you won’t like it. My reputation is built upon my honesty, integrity and transparency, and telling you this any other way would be just plain wrong for me to do.

With THTC, you ARE allowed to switch away from OVO - you just have to find a supplier that can support you. The fact that hardly any exist is not OVO’s fault. The catch however? It probably won’t be much cheaper for you elsewhere anyway and OVO is one of only two suppliers known to have the necessary knowledge of THTC. Scottish Power is the other - and you really don’t want to switch in that direction.