https://smartmetercheck.citizensadvice.org.uk/

You have SMETS1

Thanks both for the replies. It was the site in Jeffus’ reply that I checked which confirms a Smets1 - which you confirm. However the lady in Br Gas is adamant it has been upgraded to a Smet2 remotely. Is there any way of checking if it has and if so when ? Also, they appear to want to put the blame on to the guy who installed the solar panels - he told me that there is no way he can affect the readings in the meter (other than of course by lowering the readings because of the panels). I have assumed he’s correct - is he ?

Thanks

Les Booth

As long as they’ve been correctly wired. Presumably you have a generation meter, separate to your standard one? Does the total on this agree with the additional usage you believe the main meter now shows?

It is possible to wire solar PV in such a way that it bypasses your meter, so you won't benefit from it. From your photo is looks like this hasn't happened.

It is not possible to wire solar PV in any way that increases your meter readings. The only way your readings should increase is if you're using more electricity.

Did your solar PV come with an app that monitors your electricity use? You could check this to see how much you're using and if it matches your meter readings. It won't match exactly because the monitoring devices aren't 100% accurate but it should be within 10%.

Thank you for your replies - will attempt to reply to all in this reply.

 Presumably you have a generation meter, separate to your standard one? Sorry - not sure what this means. I have a reading on the SMETS meter which is mirrored on the small ‘smart’ meter. If it is a meter for the solar panels then this must be in the loft which I haven’t checked yet.

I think it has been wired correctly as the Smet meter does show kwh being exported to the grid.

We are not using extra electricity with the exception of Sunday roast days :-)

We do have a Solis cloud app which does show kwh being passed back to grid and the consumption from the grid roughly matches..

I have attached a response from Br Gas which still takes the line of intransigence -”the meters are correct.

I have also attached my Jan & Feb meter readings from Br Gas and my reply to the intransigent replay from Br Gas.

The meter readings clearly show an increase AFTER the panels were installed on 19th January and a decrease on the 14th Feb (I suspect this is the date that the meter was upgraded to Smets2 not 18th Feb as she states.

There must be some techie either here or in Br Gas who understands what happened between 19th Jan and 14th Feb - the best guess from the Solar panel installer was that the Smets1 meter was adding the feedback to the grid to the actual consumption.

Any ideas please - getting nowhere with Br Gas despite 3 hours of ‘chat’ and phone calls ?

Once again - many thanks for your help so far.

Reply from Br Gas

You’ve recently been in touch and asked us to look into an important issue. Thanks for giving me the chance to resolve this for you. I’m sincerely sorry for the inconvenience and stress caused by this issue as I know this has taken up much of your time and has potentially caused undue stress and worry.  

Thank you for speaking to me over the phone on 09 March 2023. As such I wanted to let you know what’s been done so far. I have checked your account and can confirm your electricity meter has been upgraded to SMETS 2 on 18 May 2022. Enrolment was taken place remotely  ‘over the air’ process that avoided the need to physically exchange meters. I have also requested the copy of our call please be assure relevant team will be in touch with you to confirm the identity and once Identity has been confirmed they have 28 days to process the information.  

In relation to high consumption between 19 January 2023 and 14 February 2023. There is nothing we do on our side which makes customer consumption to go high or low. We receive meter read based on your usage. I completely understand your point of view, I know what I am going to reply is going to look like I don’t understand your query but I am sorry to say there is nothing else I could add into it. 

From 17 December 2021 to 26 December 2021 in 9 days you have used 85 units which are 9.5 units (average) a day. 

From 29 December 2021 to 17 January 2022 in 19 days you have used 183 units which are 9.7 units (average) a day. 

From 18 January 2022 to 14 February 2022 in 27 days you have used 222 units which are 8.2 units (average) a day.  

From 18 January 2023 to 14 February 2023 in 27 days you have used 292 units which are 10.8 units (average) a day.  

As we receive reads daily and there is no high jump in a day and average seems fine and reads has started to go down on daily basis. We are not able to find any issue in your meter. If you are thinking your meter is faulty we can perform a Meter Accuracy Test. If your meter is tested and the result is accurate the you will be charged  £70.40 for your meter. If meter found inaccurate fee will not be charged and we will look into your meter reads from 19 January 2023. 

I want to resolve this matter as quickly as possible for you. To do this I need some more information from you. Please let me know If you would like to have meter accuracy test to go ahead. If you any further question related to your query or my explanation above.  

Please get in touch by 17 March 2023 so I can progress this for you. Don’t worry if you’re unable to provide this information, just contact me so we can discuss our next steps, by replying to this email.  If possible, could you let me know a date and time so I can call and speak with you and explain the information I need.  

If however, you don’t need me to help or you’re happy that this is now resolved, you don’t need to do anything and I’ll make the arrangements to close your complaint on 17 March 2023.

I look forward to hearing from you shortly and resolving this issue for you.
If you’d like information about our complaints handling procedure you can view a copy by either going online, or by getting in touch and one of our advisors will arrange to send you a copy free of charge.

Thanks,

Sorry - my response to Br Gas reply

Hi Rupinder

Thank you for your reply.

I do NOT require a meter test.

I have attached your meter readings for January and February where you will note that the daily consumption jumps considerably after 19th January and MIRACULOUSLY falls about the time the meter was upgraded to SMETS2.

CLEARLY the meter readings between Jan 19 and Feb 13 were overstated and the upgrade resolved the problem. It did not however resolve the problem retrospectively.You HAVE overcharged me for the period 19th Jan to 13th Feb. We did not have extra appliances or relatives staying during this period as questioned by one of your helpdesks.

If YOU are unable to resolve this issue and the 2 hours 'chatting' to your helpdesks + time speaking to yourself, I will have no hesitation in writing directly to your C.E.O. Chris O'Shea with copies to the energy ombudsman and Ofgen

Regards

Les Booth

Just so you know, your meter is still SMETS1 hardware and therefore the firmware/software remains SMETS1 as well - it simply has the ability to connect to DCC now which enables it to run like a SMETS2.

British Gas clearly didn’t explain that one very well either...

if the wiring is done properly. I assume that in addition to your normal metre, you also have a generation metre. Is the sum here consistent with the additional consumption you think the main metre currently displays?

Hi,

I had a smart meter installed in 2018 by nPower (smets 1). Switched over to Ovo 3 years ago and ass expected lost smart functionality. Was not a huge problem to be fair. But now with invoative tariffs coming in i do feel that a working smart meter will start to make a difference. No idea when/if DCC will migrate my meter. IS there any way to ask for a swap to smets 2? Celarly no point in changing utlisation pattern to low demand times if it cant be tracked and reported back.

Any advice would be appreciated.

 Hi @jras2636,

Welcome to the forum. 

SMETS1 meters were expected to be migrated to DCC by September 2022. If yours hasn’t been yet then there may be an issue stopping this from happening. It may be worth contacting our support team who should be able to arrange a meter exchange appointment for you. 

This article may also be helpful:

Thank you. I will contact OVO support and find out. IS the dec 2022 deadline still valid. Saw elsewhere that the deadline was changed a couple of times

Just so you know, if the migration of your meter fails for any reason and hits the deadline, you automatically become eligible for a free swap to SMETS2. OVO can check whether that’s relevant yet - just ask.