To homepage To homepage
Solved

High costs with my new smart meter and In Home Display (IHD) - are my prices correct?

  • 12 January 2018
  • 28 replies
  • 23030 views
N
Rank
Userlevel 2

I had new smart meters fitted yesterday afternoon. Rather shocked to see my costs at over £5 for half a day by the time I went to bed!!! Most of it was Gas usage (>£3) and it wasn't even a cold day. According to my Nest thermostat, the boiler was only running approx 1.5 hours since the meter was fitted. How can 1.5 hrs heating equate to £3 usage ? Boiler (not combi) is rated 24 kW max and tariff shows 4p/kW (which is wrong - should be 2.68p). My basic maths suggests this should be 1.5 hrs * 24 kW * £ 0.04 = £ 1.44 + 27p standing charge. That assumes boiler runs at full tilt the whole time which is not correct as I hear it modulate down after a few minutes.

This doesn't seem right to me. Even if/when the tariff is corrected it seems too high.
How can I get the tariff set to the one I'm actually signed up to? How likely is it I've got a duff meter that is reading too high on gas?

icon

Best answer by Tim_OVO 16 January 2018, 18:35

Updated on 09/09/2020:

 

No increase in costs due to a smart meter:


Having a smart meter installed won't directly increase your costs. There are no hidden effects on usage, and your tariff won't change. There are two things that will change after getting a smart meter, though.

 

Your bills will no longer be estimated: 

 

If you hadn't provided regular reading previously then your bills may have been estimated and therefore not accurate. A smart meter will send us a reading when we need it to make sure your bill is spot on.

 

Your meter will be accurate:

 

The meter will clock accurately. Old meters (this does depend on how old your previous meter was) can slow down, or even speed up meaning they're not measuring your energy usage correctly. We'd only expect to see this with very old meters. A brand new meter, smart or otherwise, will clock what you're using accurately.

 

Plan prices may have changed over time:


Another thing to consider is if you've renewed onto a new plan recently. The unit rates and standing charges will likely have changed from your previous plan. You can check the prices per Kwh and daily standing charge in the ‘Plan’ tab of your online account

 

 

There’s another topic on smart meters and higher then expected readings here and here that might be worth checking out...

View original

28 replies

S
Rank
Hi, I've emailed OVO too but posting here in case anyone else has experienced a similar issue. My monthly bills have been averaging at 80-90m with some colder months this has increased sometimes to over a hundred which is fine. My statement's from November through to January were 95, 70 and 75 respectively. For some reason I didn't get a statement for February and then my meter was installed at the beginning of March. I checked my account in early April and received notification that I could reduce my dd to 44 pounds - which i was delighted about.

But I've just noticed that my bills for March and April were 151 and 271 respectively !! I've gone from being over 170 in credit to 90 in arrears.

I've gone from an average of 10 or 11 units a month used on gas to 150 from January to April - bonkers and am sure a mistake !

I could understand my bill for March being double since I wasn't billed for February but a combined bill of 422 ?
Mattj3135
Rank
Userlevel 6
Hi, I've emailed OVO too but posting here in case anyone else has experienced a similar issue. My monthly bills have been averaging at 80-90m with some colder months this has increased sometimes to over a hundred which is fine. My statement's from November through to January were 95, 70 and 75 respectively. For some reason I didn't get a statement for February and then my meter was installed at the beginning of March. I checked my account in early April and received notification that I could reduce my dd to 44 pounds - which i was delighted about.

But I've just noticed that my bills for March and April were 151 and 271 respectively !! I've gone from being over 170 in credit to 90 in arrears.

I've gone from an average of 10 or 11 units a month used on gas to 150 from January to April - bonkers and am sure a mistake !

I could understand my bill for March being double since I wasn't billed for February but a combined bill of 422 ?

Hi there,

Firstly am sorry to learn of the issues you've faced with fluctuating bills - its not the norm! I'm afraid I'm PAYG so can't advise on the billing issues mentioned -I can only speculate the system sent a message advising you could reduce your monthly DD payments however this reduction led to your payments not covering your usage through the winter months and needing to be increased. On the face of it may be best to revert the deduction of DD if easier to spread to cost of winter usage over the year? (Hey if you do you will benefit significantly from the 3% interest)

Secondly you've done the right thing emailing OVO - please do let us know how you've got on resolving this billing issue.

Hope it's sorted soon
J
Rank
I also had new Smart Meters fitted a week ago and have the same problem. The electric seems ok but the gas is ticking away at an alarming rate! So much so that I've unplugged the home display as it was scaring me to death! I did ring them about it but they just suggested I wait to get my first bill and then query it if it seems really high. Customer service wasn't really helpful. They seemed to suggest that it was possible there was a period of adjustment and said she couldn't actually look at the meter readings yet.
Tim_OVO
Rank
Userlevel 7

Updated on 09/09/2020:

 

No increase in costs due to a smart meter:


Having a smart meter installed won't directly increase your costs. There are no hidden effects on usage, and your tariff won't change. There are two things that will change after getting a smart meter, though.

 

Your bills will no longer be estimated: 

 

If you hadn't provided regular reading previously then your bills may have been estimated and therefore not accurate. A smart meter will send us a reading when we need it to make sure your bill is spot on.

 

Your meter will be accurate:

 

The meter will clock accurately. Old meters (this does depend on how old your previous meter was) can slow down, or even speed up meaning they're not measuring your energy usage correctly. We'd only expect to see this with very old meters. A brand new meter, smart or otherwise, will clock what you're using accurately.

 

Plan prices may have changed over time:


Another thing to consider is if you've renewed onto a new plan recently. The unit rates and standing charges will likely have changed from your previous plan. You can check the prices per Kwh and daily standing charge in the ‘Plan’ tab of your online account

 

 

There’s another topic on smart meters and higher then expected readings here and here that might be worth checking out...

Carbon neutral - we need a community to get there!
P
Rank
Hi everyone, Anyone else had a smart meter installed by Ovo and suddenly my costs have rocketed. When I did my own readings I felt more in control of the situation. My smart meter indicates very low usage specially now in the summer but when the bill comes now it seems to have escalated.
M
Rank
My bill is getting worse it's £3+ a day and I don't understand why. Before I got a smart meter I was on a fixed rate of paying £47 a month now it's over £60 a month and now I'm in debt of over £100 I don't understand why my bill is so much when during the day time I'm mostly on my laptop which isn't plugged in to charge and I only use my heating for one hour per day I make that a general rule as heating bills usually cost a lot so why so much?
D
Hi,my statement for 15th oct to 14th move was £34 for elec and £41.29 for gas
then for 15th nov to 14th dec was £106 for elec and £66 for gas
then 15th dec to 14th feb elec £94.09 and ££186 for gas
why’s it gone up so much?
Slinky
Rank
Userlevel 4
The easiest way to check if anything is amiss would be to look at the number of kWh's you've used for each fuel for the two bills. This should give you an indication of your usage which you could then compare with the same period last year. If the change has increased excessively then there might be another issue that might need investigating. Are you on a SMART meter?
"The only queer people are those who don't love anybody."--Rita Mae Brown
E
Rank
Hi -

We had gas and electricity smart meters installed 2 days ago and the IHD is displaying completely the wrong cost values.

Example: Electricity used so far today 11.88kWh - cost £17.62. That's more than a pound per kWh which obviously isn't correct - nowhere near - not even with daily standing charge and VAT.

And yet if I go to "Now" its says current draw is 652w, at cost per hour of £0.09, which is correct.

Same crazy values for Gas too.

Have tried restarting the IHD. Makes no difference.
Tim_OVO
Rank
Userlevel 7

Sounds like a tariff error with the smart meters and the IHD, @europa - see this topic thread for more info, and message us on webchat to diagnose: Help Centre.

Carbon neutral - we need a community to get there!
S
Rank
I had a smart meter fitted this morning. I previously used one from EDF and it was good with no issues at all from day one.

I seem to have a huge issue with my OVO meter. My usage is roughly £1.30 daily and maybe up to £2.00 at Christmas with lots of extra cooking,! Well this meter was fitted at 10am today and it is now 21.45 and my usage is up to £8.90 and used so far 6.34 kWh. Not that I know what that means? I am scared to see what it will be tomorrow.

I really want to get this meter removed as there is obviously an issue with it. I do not all of a sudden increase my electricity usage by 8 times just because I have a meter replaced.
Please can someone from OVO advise what I do to get this meter removed ASAP.
Eva_OVO
Rank
Userlevel 6
I can understand your frustration @sallam, but you need to give the meters chance to connect and communicate with each other - this can take up to 48 hours.

If the cost still seem abnormal this time next week, get in touch using any of the methods in Tim's best answer so the team can help.

We won't remove the meters, but if there is an issue which is unlikely we'll follow the necessary steps to resolve this.
My friend told me how electricity is measured and I was like Watt!
B
Rank
Hello, just over 2 days ago I had both my Electricity and Gas meters replaced by you for the new SMETS2 Smart meters.
My in home display is telling me incorrect information regarding my tariffs. The last 2 days I have used approximately 3.5kwh of electricity per day yet it is telling me I have been charged around £8 per day for this.

This is obviously massively incorrect. I am concerned I will be charged this. How can we rectify this problem? How can we change the tariff settings on my IHD? Without the correct tariffs shown on my IHD it is completely useless.


I just want to be sure I am charged the correct amount as I take pride in building my credit with OVO and always making sure my readings are correct and on time.

I would also like you to confirm my Direct Debit payment amount will not be changed now I have smart meters fitted as I see this is a problem many OVO customers have experienced

Hope you can sort this OVO you guys have never failed me yet!

Kindest regards

Mr B Perry
Amy_OVO
Rank
Userlevel 6
You've headed to the right place for the answer, @bperry306, good work!

As @Tim_OVO mentions if the In Home Display has a tariff issue please get in touch directly on the email advised. It may just need a bit more time to right itself.

Thanks!
OVO-Joyed to help!
R
I’ve just had an IHD - but it’s showing very high usage (£15-20) a day which bears no relation to our consumption. What do I do?
Eva_OVO
Rank
Userlevel 6
Take a look at this topic for more info, @Rhodri! 🙂
My friend told me how electricity is measured and I was like Watt!
M
Rank
Userlevel 1
Disappointing to see threads about the incorrectly high usage cost on the IHDs from a month or so ago showing as Solved, when it’s not solved. There was no mention of it following my install 5 days ago by the engineer, or from OVO in a follow up communication, meaning Ive been be wasting time fiddling with the IHD and wondering if we have a dodgy smart meter.

These devices are meant to make meter readings related hassles a thing of the past, but the IHDs coming out of OVO still have this bug, even though this has been flagged for some time, meaning more customers will therefore be having their time wasted and/or be worried 🙄
Eva_OVO
Rank
Userlevel 6
The topic has been marked as solves as the best answer offers a resolution for the issue, @Mja. Have you followed the advice in the best answer? This would be the best steps to take to get this sorted.

It's worth noting, the readings come directly from the meters - not the IHD's and you're not billed from the handheld device either. Your statements will always be accurate.
My friend told me how electricity is measured and I was like Watt!
M
Rank
Userlevel 1
I would say it’s not solved @Eva_OVO as customers have reported these IHDs are showing massively high costs for some time. I only got mine last week only to find it has exactly the same issue, so it’s not solved. Completely aware it is just a display and not what is reported for billing. Anyway, if you guys at OVO want to keep the Solved metrics up this way, up to you, any customer who has an IHD behaving this way would disagree.

Yes I have emailed to report this, but I’m sure the reply will be you are aware of the issue and are working on it, in other words, not solved.
Eva_OVO
Rank
Userlevel 6
Thanks for your comment, @Mja.

We marked this forum topic as solved as there's an answer to the question asked by @nicka88. The best answer from @Tim_OVO includes a suitable resolution for the issue that was raised.

We're not saying the issue as a whole has been solved, but the question on the forum has been. The reason we mark a question as solved is so our advice is easier to find by other forum members.

If you've emailed the team they'll get back to you within 48 hours.
My friend told me how electricity is measured and I was like Watt!
M
Rank
Userlevel 1
They did get back to me, telling me to give it 5-6 weeks, after that it could be an IHD problem.😫
B
HI guys,
We had a smart meter fitted yesterday and its saying on the IHD that we have used £34 in just 1 day!!. Starting to worry in case we need to both get second jobs
Amy_OVO
Rank
Userlevel 6
Hey @Buddy, you'll find the info you need in the above thread.

Cheers!
OVO-Joyed to help!
M
Rank
i had a smart meter fitted about 8 hrs ago and it’s saying I have used £11.45 already. Please tell me this can’t be correct.
Amy_OVO
Rank
Userlevel 6
You'll find lots of handy info above, @Mrs c, hope this helps!
OVO-Joyed to help!

Reply


@OVOEnergy latest: