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Meter reading goes beyond 9999

  • 14 December 2023
  • 6 replies
  • 702 views

I do the readings for my mum who is 89. her meter went past 9999. According to OVO all you have to do is submit the reading - but this just doesn’t work. It wont accept a reading lower than the previous one. So I tried to get them to change it by phone - a long hard struggle where they want me to post photos to prove it ! 

Eventually the guy said he would record it but then added the new reading to the electric instead of gas. It doesnt seem like the staff are aware of the problems either. Mum doesnt want a new meter or a smart meter - sometimes when you get to 89 you just want an easy life and up to date bills

Can anyone confirm if this facility actually works without a phone call ? I have asked for a bug to be raised to address this - OVO should test their systems !

6 replies

Blastoise186
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I’m afraid with a gas meter that old, it really should be replaced. OVO’s system can deal with four digit gas meters - and is also capable of dealing with “going round the clock”. However, many of the meters that do so are well past their sell-by date and may become more and more inaccurate as time passes.

Those photos are needed to help prove the claim - purely to prevent fraud. Submitting them as requested will speed up the fix.

However, the cold hard truth is that the only long-term solution is replacing the meter.

Securing energy by zapping security bugs... For that is The Blastoise Way!
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Funny that they didn’t mention anything about replacing  , they know full well the age of the meter - who pays for it ? 
their web pages say its easy just enter the new value 

it’s a property built in 1950’s 

Firedog
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Just a thought - can you submit a reading if you just add 10000 to whatever the meter says? 

There may be a line in the meter description file that gives the number of digits it displays, but I don’t know whether this would cause a five-digit reading to be rejected. And if the meter is as old as it sounds, this may not be the first time it’s gone round the clock.  

Noel | I have no official status; I'm just a volunteer who comes here to help other customers. My gear: Aclara SGM 1416-B Electricity-only E7 meter; Chameleon IHD3-PPMID-AAA
Blastoise186
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That trick won’t work I’m afraid - it’d just make the problem worse.

Securing energy by zapping security bugs... For that is The Blastoise Way!
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They eventually sorted it after loads of emails and two phone calls ( in which one adviser told me he’d sorted it - only to find he had changed the electric reading instead of gas !!)

just for info for anyone else having this issue- at 9999 , only a member of the billing team can manually add the correct meter reading / I have asked for an update to online and app to mention this but they haven’t acknowledged they even have a problem 

no new meter or photo was required.

the billing team estimated usage past 9999 then I could enter the correct up to date reading 

Emmanuelle_OVO
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Userlevel 7

Hey @Bjbruce89,

 

I’m glad to hear this has been resolved.

 

To find out more about booking meter upgrades check out this topic:

 

 

Renewable Energy? Big Fan.

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