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Gas usage not showing online after SMETS2 smart meter fitting - any ideas?

  • 21 January 2019
  • 27 replies
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  • Bart
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In response to OVO's 'encouragement', our 'smart' meter system (so far, marked only by its dumbness) was fitted on 18th December. The IHD (In Home Display) shows some (and inconsistent) info about electricity usage and none about gas - I note that other contributors have flagged this problem.

Compared with the known power rating of various appliances (I tend to use our microwave since it is programmable for a wide range of different power outputs), the IHD is showing much higher electricity usage that I would have expected.

So far, there is no info at all on the OVO website regarding our gas usage and, as elderly people, my wife and I struggle to press the buttons and read the figures on the new gas meter - that is equipped with an entirely blank display...

OVO customer support promised that someone would arrange to visit and check the system within five days of my notifying the problem. Nothing has happened - except for a further email politely telling me to shut up and wait. I can provide these emails if needed.

At the very least, I need to be able to compare power usage now with the historical readings I have supplied for several years in order to check the accuracy of the meters - but this information is no longer readily available when I log in.

As you can see, this is very frustrating and worrying - gas and electricity costs are major issues for pensioners. I would welcome some proper (and understandable) information and, of course, solutions to these problems.

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Best answer by Transparent 22 January 2019, 11:53

Updated on 10/09/20: The info below outlines reasons why it takes up to 6 weeks post installation, to get your account up to date, which is needed before your online account will show your smart meter readings and usage.

If it’s been longer then 6 weeks, and your meter readings aren’t showing, see this topic for how to diagnose communication issues with your SMETS2 gas smart meter and your supplier.

 

Hi @Bart May I please put your mind at rest here?

It's only 1-month since your meters were exchanged for new SMETS2's.... and that period includes the Christmas break.

Before OVO can provide the correct data, there is a process which gets completed which is out of their hands. This includes:

a. Notification being sent by the Meter Installer to ECOES (the National Meter database) which identifies the Meter Reference numbers, the readings on the old meters and the readings on the new meters (which may not be zero!)

b. ECOES sends a Notification to DCC (Data Communications Company) to establish an encrypted link to your new Smart Meters and undertake tests.

c. ECOES sends Notification to your Energy Supplier (OVO) providing the readings. OVO must check these against your billing record and confirm to ECOES that the readings are valid... in that they are constent with what was expected for the exchange date.

d. ECOES Notifies DCC that OVO are the Supplier who is permitted to pass control data to your meters. DCC acknowledge and send a copy to OVO.

e. OVO send your tariff data to your Meters (which gets used by your IHD to inform you how much you're spending).

f. OVO check the usage-stats since your SMETS2's were installed and send a correction-factor to the meters to allow for inaccuracies.

etc...

So there's an awful lot of work going on in the background before OVO are in a position to give you proper statistics, let alone calculate a bill!

The system works - and is secure.

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27 replies

PeterR1947
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Reading your gas smart meter is easy, simply press the "9" key, the end of a pen or pencil is best for this. First it gives you the volume in cubic meters which is what you need to submit to OVO, followed by the kWh and other details you don't need.

If your smart meter isn’t giving OVO your meter readings though, this could indicate that there is a problem with the signal. To get this checked out, contact the Social team on Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/ovoenergy/ or Twitter - https://twitter.com/OVOEnergy. They’ll be able to run through some questions with you to help determine if it’s a communication issue with your smart meter.
B
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Thanks, but we do not belong to Facebook or Twitter and have no wish to be part of them. As I mentioned, I have already contacted customer support (on several occasions) and have been told that the matter is in hand, and that someone will be in touch to arrange a visit. This has not happened. Presumably, customer support should be able to arrange this if they present it as the next step.

I will take a gas reading using the instruction you provide (thanks) but should point out that OVO told me that this would no longer be necessary - this is a reason ordinary consumers agree to having smart meters fitted. We seem to be going backwards here!

OVO has been much better than any other supplier we have experienced - until this point. I do feel that there must be a fault in OVO's administration if customer support is unable to arrange adequate help for people who are not on social media...
Transparent
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Updated on 10/09/20: The info below outlines reasons why it takes up to 6 weeks post installation, to get your account up to date, which is needed before your online account will show your smart meter readings and usage.

If it’s been longer then 6 weeks, and your meter readings aren’t showing, see this topic for how to diagnose communication issues with your SMETS2 gas smart meter and your supplier.

 

Hi @Bart May I please put your mind at rest here?

It's only 1-month since your meters were exchanged for new SMETS2's.... and that period includes the Christmas break.

Before OVO can provide the correct data, there is a process which gets completed which is out of their hands. This includes:

a. Notification being sent by the Meter Installer to ECOES (the National Meter database) which identifies the Meter Reference numbers, the readings on the old meters and the readings on the new meters (which may not be zero!)

b. ECOES sends a Notification to DCC (Data Communications Company) to establish an encrypted link to your new Smart Meters and undertake tests.

c. ECOES sends Notification to your Energy Supplier (OVO) providing the readings. OVO must check these against your billing record and confirm to ECOES that the readings are valid... in that they are constent with what was expected for the exchange date.

d. ECOES Notifies DCC that OVO are the Supplier who is permitted to pass control data to your meters. DCC acknowledge and send a copy to OVO.

e. OVO send your tariff data to your Meters (which gets used by your IHD to inform you how much you're spending).

f. OVO check the usage-stats since your SMETS2's were installed and send a correction-factor to the meters to allow for inaccuracies.

etc...

So there's an awful lot of work going on in the background before OVO are in a position to give you proper statistics, let alone calculate a bill!

The system works - and is secure.

Save energy... recycle electrons!
B
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Thanks for your clear, detailed reply: I have found this genuinely helpful. I've waited a day or two before responding because there are still uncertainties buzzing around in my head. For example, I find it incomprehensible that the fitter who installed the kit should say to me: "It may take a couple of hours for the gas information to show up" when she (presumably) knew that 'two months' might be closer than 'two hours'. Nor do I understand why OVO customer support should say that someone would contact me within 5 working days to arrange follow-up when they must have known that this would not happen. I assume that they were trying to get me off their backs: it gives me no pleasure to be so stubborn and relentless about this but I feel that I was misled about what to expect.

As far as the meter is concerned, I should point out that some (incomplete) information was immediately available for electricity - so it is a puzzle that the delays should apply only to gas.

To be quite honest, I regret giving in to the hype and having the 'smart' meters fitted: I did not have the information then that I have now - surely, people should be told openly about these issues in advance so that they can choose on the basis that they are properly prepared for what is otherwise an unexpected and confusing outcome. Despite researching smart meters online, I had no expectation of these problems - perhaps these issues are buried somewhere in the small print (which is where bad news usually finds a home); if so, then I missed it.

Thanks again - and, as you advise, I will wait to see what happens (though I am still uneasy).
Transparent
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Hi @Bart Yes, I can understand what you're saying. You weren't really made aware of what's involved. Had you been, then no doubt the whole process would've seemed a lot less frustrating.

I don't know about why you were informed to expect someone else to do "follow up" within 5 days. After the installation is completed, everything else can be done without needing to involve the customer... unless there's a physical fault of course.

In the long run I don't think you'll regret having SMETS2 meters.
I wish I had them!

SMETS2 enables so many future possibilities to be implemented within your home. Devices that aren't time-constrained such as
  • washing machine
  • tumble drier
  • storage radiator
  • immersion heater
can be configured to only draw power when it reaches a price threshold that you are happy to pay. Instead of the old idea of Economy-7, a customer might get offered a cheap-rate midday if there's a surfeit of renewable energy available.

Whether you ever decide to take advantage of such energy-saving features is entirely up to you, but you wouldn't have the option without SMETS2 meters.
Save energy... recycle electrons!
C
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My electric usage has stopped showing on my second gen smart meter. I've switched off the smart meter display but still does not show on restart.

SW, WAN, HAN and GAS are flashing green on the electricity meter, MESH isn't flashing.

Any suggestions?

Paul
Amy_OVO
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Welcome to the forum, @Corskey, please check out @Transparent's best answer for further info.

Thanks!
OVO-Joyed to help!
Transparent
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Hi @Corskey. The LED indicator flashes are probably correct. The flash-speed matters.

Have a look at the animated diagram I posted here. Very few of us have a MESH network on our Communication Hub.
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Barnabee
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It is just about 8 weeks since my SMETS2 meters were installed. Both are working correctly and I can see my half hour usage for gas and electrity using the OVO app.

I have had a closing statement for the usage from my old gas meter and statements for the the usage of the new meter.

However I have had no billing for my old electric meter closing usage and have not had any statements for the electric usage since the new meter was installed at all.

Whilst it's nice that my credit is building up I think by now both gas and electric accounts should be in order.

Coupled with this I still have a really useless IHD that has been waiting for data since it was activated by OVO. It has never worked despite carrying out all of the remedies suggested. (Photo)

So should I contact OVO again or should I be even more patient and wait?

Amy_OVO
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I've moved your post here, @Barnabee, please check out @Transparent's best answer.

I'd recommend getting in touch with our team to check over the billing on your account.

You can send us a message on Facebook, Twitter and our Help Centre has online chat. Or give them a call, you can reach our Customer Care team 9-5 Monday-Friday on 0330 303 5063.

Hope this helps!

OVO-Joyed to help!
Transparent
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Hi @Barnabee - it might be more useful to read through the discussions on similar issues we've been having elsewhere on the Forum. Start by jumping in to the middle of this thread about issues with Smart Meters not working and IHDs displaying nothing.

I doubt that OVO Customer Services have yet been briefed on the content of that Thread. OVO's SMETS2 Team will want to be very certain of how they successfully implemented a cure on my meter installation before they risk propagating the same code to others.
Save energy... recycle electrons!
Barnabee
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Thanks for the replies. Having read through a few more threads I will wait a further 2 weeks. If OVO had been more honest about SMETS2 I would never have accepted the new meters.
I was wrongly led to believe all of the issues were sorted out after SMETS1. Somewhere at the bottom of this mess the taxpayer and the customer is picking up the tab. I just wonder if the team in overall charge ever worked on the Nimrod Project.
Transparent
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Thanks @Barnabee ~ I don't think the situation is anywhere near clear enough to lay any blame at the feet of the numerous parties involved in the running saga of SMETS2. Have a look at the "interpretation" I've just posted here yesterday.

Perhaps all those engineers who spent so long working on Nimrod have now found their niche positions in the UK Smart Energy market 😜
Save energy... recycle electrons!
B
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So over a month ago my Electricity Smart meter failed and stopped sending readings to both my IHD and to OVO, after weeks of minimal discussion and with the exact same basic answer each time, nothing has been resolved and I am completely in the dark with what’s going on. I am still waiting to be contacted or phoned by the smart team which I was promised would be within 10 days..... I’ve been waiting over a month now.

Anyway I have now not received my statement this month which is odd and just to top it all off it now appears my Gas smart meter has also failed and stopped sending out readings as of 3 days ago!

I really do understand that all this smart tech is new and untried with OVO and I’m sure they’re busy and all this and all that, but I just want to be kept in the loop. How do I even go about phoning OVO? **Edited by moderator** to my self service reward I couldn’t care less about that anymore I just want results and answers and somebody to speak to me.

I would like my meters replaced and a date which this will be performed please 😊
Amy_OVO
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I've popped your post here, @bperry306, I feel it has the most relevant information, please check out @Transparent's best answer.

This does sound like it has been arduous and a bit of an ordeal, none the less, I'd recommend getting in touch with our team to check over progress of the firmware update that is due, this should resolve all issues.

You can send us a message on Facebook, Twitter, webchat via the Help Centre, or give them a call. You can reach our Customer Care team 8am-6pm Monday-Friday on 0330 303 5063.

Thanks!

OVO-Joyed to help!
C
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Please delete - moved to a more appropriate thread
E
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Hi@Bart May I please put your mind at rest here?

It's only 1-month since your meters were exchanged for new SMETS2's.... and that period includes the Christmas break.

Before OVO can provide the correct data, there is a process which gets completed which is out of their hands. This includes:

a. Notification being sent by the Meter Installer to ECOES (the National Meter database) which identifies the Meter Reference numbers, the readings on the old meters and the readings on the new meters (which may not be zero!)

b. ECOES sends a Notification to DCC (Data Communications Company) to establish an encrypted link to your new Smart Meters and undertake tests.

c. ECOES sends Notification to your Energy Supplier (OVO) providing the readings. OVO must check these against your billing record and confirm to ECOES that the readings are valid... in that they are constent with what was expected for the exchange date.

d. ECOES Notifies DCC that OVO are the Supplier who is permitted to pass control data to your meters. DCC acknowledge and send a copy to OVO.

e. OVO send your tariff data to your Meters (which gets used by your IHD to inform you how much you're spending).

f. OVO check the usage-stats since your SMETS2's were installed and send a correction-factor to the meters to allow for inaccuracies.

etc...

So there's an awful lot of work going on in the background before OVO are in a position to give you proper statistics, let alone calculate a bill!

The system works - and is secure.

Hi @Transparent Currently experiencing the same problem here. Firstly interesting to see that OVO installers are still misleading customers some 9 months after this original issue was raised! I too was told it would take 2 hours for the Gas display to show up not 2 months during my installation 3 weeks ago.

 

Having read your explanation above it’s clear there’s a lot of processes need to happen to enable the Gas usage to feed through into the SMETS2 IHD. However my question is why does it take OVO 2 months to do what they’re competitors can do in 30minutes? Shell energy states in their online brochure that the gas usage should display within 30 minutes of installation and I know this claim to be true to based on a friends experience. Similarly my parents have a SMETS2 from Sainsbury’s energy and said the Gas showed up almost instantly. Why is OVO letting it’s customers down so badly by lengthening the process unnecessarily? 

Transparent
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I understand the points you’re making @Emphire … but I think that’s an over-simplification of the process, which unfairly makes OVO look poor. Let me explain:

The 30-minute interval you refer to is dictated by inbuilt delay in SMETS2 gas meters. In order to conserve battery life, they only transmit a reading to the Comms Hub every half-hour. There is no “set-up mode” which allows more frequent transmissions whilst the engineer is on site and tracking down possible problems. I am reporting this deficiency back to Ofgem as part of the current Public Consultation.

Thus, a 30-min commissioning time could only be achieved if the link between the SMETS2 Gas Meter, the Coms Hub, the “gas-proxy”, the IHD, and the Telefonica Network all operates successfully first-time. No competitor can alter this sequence any more than OVO can.

Secondly, there is no direct link between your SMETS2 installation and OVO. All SMETS commands pass through DCC via their encrypted transmission system.

When an Installer telephones OVO’s engineers at HQ to check that they are “receiving” data from a new installation, that isn’t the end of the process. Both DCC and Telefonica then commence their part of the commissioning, which is likely to include firmware updates being downloaded from the manufacturers of the various component parts.

Finally, OVO themselves diagnosed a problem with maintaining the Zigbee link between the Proxy within the Communication Hub, and the physical SMETS2 Gas Meter. I know this because my site was used to verify the process by sending firmware updates created by OVO themselves.

The new code was not immediately propagated to all other OVO customers, because it was only partially successful. The firmware in my Comms Hub later failed in such a manner that remote recovery was no longer possible. As such I received another complete set of SMETS2 hardware (my third).

And that’s why you aren’t yet seeing OVO sending out a code-fix to all other sites. Had they done so, then they would probably be facing the need to replace everyone’s SMETS2 hardware, not just mine!

I’m just going to tag @BenS_OVO so he’s aware of what I’ve posted here, but I’m not expecting OVO to say much more about this until they’re sure they have robust code ready to distribute to everyone.

Save energy... recycle electrons!
E
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I understand the points you’re making@Emphire … but I think that’s an over-simplification of the process, which unfairly makes [color=#009030]OVO[/color] look poor. Let me explain:

The 30-minute interval you refer to is dictated by inbuilt delay in [color=#A00080]SMETS2 gas meters[/color]. In order to conserve battery life, they only transmit a reading to the [color=#5060b0]Comms Hub[/color] every half-hour. There is no “set-up mode” which allows more frequent transmissions whilst the engineer is on site and tracking down possible problems. I am reporting this deficiency back to [color=#6060b0]Ofgem[/color] as part of the current Public Consultation.

Thus, a 30-min commissioning time could only be achieved if the link between the [color=#A00080]SMETS2 Gas Meter[/color], the [color=#5060b0]Coms Hub[/color], the “gas-proxy”, the [color=#6010B0]IHD[/color], and the [color=#b02030]Telefonica Network[/color] all operates successfully first-time. No competitor can alter this sequence any more than [color=#009030]OVO[/color] can.

Secondly, there is no direct link between your [color=#A00080]SMETS2[/color] installation and [color=#009030]OVO[/color]. All [color=#D00070]SMETS commands[/color] pass through [color=#d0b030]DCC[/color] via their encrypted transmission system.

When an Installer telephones [color=#009030]OVO[/color]’s engineers at HQ to check that they are “receiving” data from a new installation, that isn’t the end of the process. Both [color=#d0b030]DCC[/color] and [color=#b02030]Telefonica[/color] then commence their part of the commissioning, which is likely to include firmware updates being downloaded from the manufacturers of the various component parts.

Finally, [color=#009030]OVO[/color] themselves diagnosed a problem with maintaining the [color=#00C0D0]Zigbee link[/color] between the Proxy within the [color=#5060b0]Communication Hub[/color], and the physical [color=#A00080]SMETS2 Gas Meter[/color]. I know this because my site was used to verify the process by sending firmware updates created by [color=#009030]OVO[/color] themselves.

The new code was not immediately propagated to all other [color=#009030]OVO[/color] customers, because it was only partially successful. The firmware in my [color=#5060b0]Comms Hub[/color] later failed in such a manner that remote recovery was no longer possible. As such I received another complete set of [color=#A00080]SMETS2 hardware[/color] (my third).

And that’s why you aren’t yet seeing [color=#009030]OVO[/color] sending out a code-fix to all other sites. Had they done so, then they would probably be facing the need to replace everyone’s [color=#A00080]SMETS2 hardware[/color], not just mine!

I’m just going to tag@BenS_OVO so he’s aware of what I’ve posted here, but I’m not expecting [color=#009030]OVO[/color] to say much more about this until they’re sure they have robust code ready to distribute to everyone.

Hi @Transparent thank you for your reply, apologies I’d thought from your detailed response to the thread before that you were an OVO employee! 

 

I actually think this has been over complicated. Unless we’ve got our wires crossed and are talking about two different things here. I’m simply wondering why SMETS2 IHD’s from competitors are able to start showing gas usage almost instantly after installation whereas OVO’s seem to take 2 months to link up all the information. I think it’s a fair enough question. 

Transparent
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Two of my three SMETS2 installations showed gas readings on the IHD within the hour.

That is typical of the vast majority of OVO’s installations.

However, that does not mean the data link and the software are adequately operational. That’s why there’s another Topic here on the Forum discussing failed communications up to 6 months after everything seemed to have been installed correctly.

Save energy... recycle electrons!
Transparent
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I forgot to respond to your first point @Emphire. You are correct, I don’t work for OVO… nor any company in the energy sector actually.

This may be called the OVO Forum, but they’ve generously created it so that us members of the public can discuss energy-related issues and help each other. There are seven Forum Moderators, and a handful of other employees who reply to Forum Topics, and they all have _OVO at the end of their Handles.

The Government are opening up the energy sector so that domestic consumers are able to take an active role in the delivery and control of electricity and gas to our homes. This strategy was developed in 2014 and is called Demand Side Response.

All over the country there are people like myself who are becoming acquainted with what this means and are starting to become Energy Aggregators or run Micro-Grids. These combine local generation with that sourced from the National Grid to offer cheaper and more flexible tariffs to customers in their area.

I may appear to be technically knowledgeable on Smart Meters, but that’s only because I’ve realised what are the future possibilities and I want to take advantage of the opportunities. All that I’ve learned has been gleaned in the last 2 years.

There’s a whole load more “stuff” being developed that will eventually hang off the Smart Meters now being installed. So we all have a vested interest in getting the core SMETS2 system operating correctly. And that’s why I’m so active on this Forum.

Save energy... recycle electrons!
C
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Has the issue with the smart meter not showing electricity usage been solved yet?

I was promised over four months ago that a firmware update was just around the corner, but still my smart meter only shows gas usage. 😣

Nancy_OVO
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Hi @Corskey - is this on your IHD? If so, the issue should be resolved by an update which is being rolled out region by region. 

Your guiding light(bulb)
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Yes Nancy, it's a problem with my IHD. When do we expect to see it in the North West?  

I'm not sure that I have seen too many posts here celebrating the firmware update. 

Tim_OVO
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Yes Nancy, it's a problem with my IHD. When do we expect to see it in the North West?  

I'm not sure that I have seen too many posts here celebrating the firmware update. 

 

I think it’s worth making sure this isn’t something we can fix for you on an individual basis @Corskey - can send us a message on Facebook, Twitter or our Help Centre has online chat!

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