All your frequently asked questions about smart meter reading schedules

Thanks for a helpful article. However, here’s an FAQ it didn’t answer:

How?

Very good point, thanks for raising this @Firedog.

I’ve amended the topic, unfortunately, I’ve checked internally and it appears that the only way to check the meter readings schedule is by checking the usage page to see how frequently reads are being sent across. 

That doesn’t square with 

You can’t tell from a usage page whether the underlying data are actual or estimated. If half-hour data are missing, the Day page will say so, but only for that day. 

Hi @Firedog,

I’ve checked this with the relevant team who have advised me that:

If you go to Usage > View and submit meter readings > View reading history then they you should be able to see your meter read schedule in the app

You should also be able to change the frequency at which we take the meter readings within the app too. This is in the account section.

It seems this may have been updated since Emmanuelle’s reply in February.

Are you able to provide a screenshot of what you’re seeing so I can pass this on to the team to look into?

Thanks, Shads.

2 x 2 sources of confusion here, I’m afraid.

1. The app and the website are a bit different in this respect as in so many others. It would help users if instructions were clearly marked to indicate whether they apply to app, web or both. Judicious use of icons, perhaps:

   

    

2. We’re talking about two different things: meter readings and half-hourly usage data. Sadly, they’ve been cobbled together in many places and lumped under a generic term ‘readings’. 

There are three choices for a ‘reading’ schedule: half-hourly, daily or monthly. This is what I think they involve:
 

The Month and Year usage tabs derive their figures from meter readings; it’s only the Day tab that shows half-hourly figures if they’re available. That’s why there may be a minor difference between the total at the top of the Day tab and the sum of the half-hourly figures in the table. 

Ofgem prescribes a schedule for new arrangements (new customer, new meter) with half-hourly the default and daily as an option. The new settlement option adds another potential source of confusion.

Anyway, the new options on the Profile page (web) and at Account > Settings (app) have really answered my original question: how to see and/or change the reading schedule.  Many thanks to those responsible 🙏🏻