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Updated on 14/06/24 by Shads_OVO

 

Update on RTS shutdown:

 

As part of the RTS Project development, we are really happy to share with you our progress:

 

As you may be aware, the RTS signal that instructs some of our meters when to move to the “Off Peak Period”  will be closing down soon and we need to arrange for all of our RTS customers to have a meter exchange so they don’t lose any of their meter functionality.

 

The RTS signal will end for our customers on 30 June 2025. The period between 1 July - 30 September 2025 will then be used to close-down the RTS signal and allow us to manage any unexpected customers impacted.

 

After a very successful pilot, from the 17th June 2024 we will begin writing to our Economy 10 RTS customers to invite them to call us to arrange for their meter exchange. 

 

We are continuing to work at pace to enable the same solution for the majority of our other RTS customers and our aim is to begin writing to these customers in Aug 2024. 

 

We will continue to update you on our progress.

 

The sun is setting on Radio-Teleswitched (RTS) meters

 

UPDATE: July 2024 from Blastoise186

We have now released a new Forum Guide with the latest updates. Please feel free to read the rest of this thread first to know the full story, then head over to the thread linked below for the latest news.

The original guide continues below.

Original content below this line

As you may know, some big changes are coming which affect old electric meters that use Radio Teleswitches. Here’s some helpful FAQs about what’s happening.

 

What is the Radio Teleswitch System?

 

The Radio Teleswitch System (or RTS for short) is a system that was created to help with the control and management of electricity meters that had special tariffs such as Economy 7 prior to the existence of smart meters. It has a few features that are seen in smart meters today, such as remotely switching between Day or Night rates and automatically turning heating/hot water on or off, but doesn’t have the ability to collect meter readings.

 

As a fun fact: The same signals and frequencies also get used for the BBC Radio 4 longwave service, and the three transmitters have enough power to blast the signals across the entire country at once.

 

What is a Radio Teleswitch Meter?

 

These are legacy meter types that may be known as Radio Teleswitch Meters (RTS Meter) or Dynamically Teleswitched Meter (DTS Meter), however they both work in a similar way. Alongside the electricity meter itself, a Radio Teleswitch device would also be installed and it’s this device which picks up the RTS signals and controls the time switching features on the meter.

 

So are they smart meters?

 

Well… Sort of… But not quite. The signal was only ever one-way and had no way for meters to send any kind of replies, while current smart meters can do two-way links. But you could say that they were a really early form of smart meter! :wink:

Many RTS Meters could be updated with a single message, such as making changes to every time switch in a particular area all in one go. Smart Meters can only be updated individually and will ignore random broadcasts that don’t specifically target the meter directly, making them more secure.

 

What are DTS/RTS Meters used for and why would I have one?

 

These meters were mainly used for special tariffs such as Economy 7/Economy 10, HeatWise, WarmWise, Total Heat Total Control and Weathercall. Officially speaking, the tag line for them was “Using Radio transmissions to control tariffs and loads economically and reliably.” The purpose was to allow entire groups of meters to be switched in one go based on the appropriate tariffs. It also had the ability to be used for certain emergency scenarios as well. They were not used for single-rate tariffs.

 

What kind of tariffs were these meters installed for?

 

OVO has never offered or supported any legacy RTS/DTS Tariffs, but other suppliers have done so in the past. A full list is hard to locate, but here’s a few examples of known tariffs:

  • Economy 7 (only if it’s a load controlled plan where an RTS Meter is installed)
  • Economy 10 (only if it’s a load controlled plan where an RTS Meter is installed)
  • Total Heat Total Control
  • Weathercall
  • HeatWise
  • WarmWise
  • Storage Heat Control
  • White Meter
  • Superdeal
  • Flexiheat
  • Comfort Plus
  • Comfort Plus Control
  • Twin Heat

 

These tariffs sound like good deals, so why doesn’t OVO offer them?

 

Well… Here’s the thing… They’re all legacy tariffs and RTS/DTS Meters are all legacy meter types which are no longer installed. On top of that, the RTS service is actually shutting down by the end of December 2023 and this would make it impossible to provide such tariffs without smart meters being used. Most of them are also not exactly great value for money either…

 

It’s also worth noting that almost all such tariffs are closed to new customers (except the standard non-teleswitched Economy 7 which is definitely not going away!) and the suppliers which previously installed RTS/DTS Meters are ending support for them soon anyway.

 

These meters are also on life support at this point, since the BBC has been trying to shutdown the BBC Radio 4 Longwave service since 2014!

 

I’ve got an RTS/DTS Meter at the moment and it’s working fine. So what’s the problem?

 

All of these meters are legacy types which are no longer installed by any supplier today. The shutdown of the RTS service would mean that the teleswitching features would completely stop working, which could in theory leave your electricity meter jammed on the last rate it was on before the signal died, prevent your heating/hot water from turning on properly or leave the heating/hot water jammed on 24/7. OVO’s Resident Smart Meter Expert (and that’s not me!) is working with the industry and Government to figure out a safe migration plan and keep the RTS Service running until all customers can be migrated off it. The signal will be turned off eventually, but only after alternative solutions have been implemented to ensure that your heating and hot water continue to work properly.

 

In addition, many of these legacy meters are reaching end of life and the certifications are about to expire due to age. When this happens, suppliers are required to replace the meter as part of the terms of their licenses. There are still stocks of RTS Meters in the inventory that OVO and other suppliers have access to - but these stocks are reserved for existing installs only and will not be used for new installs. These stocks are intended to be used to help with maintenance of existing setups, such as replacing faulty RTS Meters. 

 

But I don’t want a smart meter and I’ve already made it clear that I wanted to opt-out! Can I have a non-smart meter instead? And why is my supplier not respecting my request?

 

Due to the rules that suppliers have to follow, suppliers are only allowed to “override and bypass” a smart meter refusal in specific circumstances. They cannot bypass just because they want to try and meet targets or boost their stats. However, attempting to force an upgrade due to a meter fault, for safety reasons, end of life meters, expired certifications or for accuracy reasons are considered valid cases to bypass opt-outs.

 

OVO has stated however, that they will not force a Smart Meter upgrade on a member who doesn’t want one. I’ve had confirmation that OVO is working with both the Citizens Advice Bureau and the Energy Ombudsman to help with discussing any concerns with members who decline an upgrade to see if there’s anything that can be done to resolve such concerns. They’re willing to discuss these with you for as long as you wish and you won’t be forced to make any decisions if you’re not ready.

 

I’m no longer with the supplier that originally gave me the meter and I don’t have that kind of tariff anymore. What can I do?

 

The good news is that your current supplier will be happy to sort you out and they’ll be in touch at some point. Parts of OVO Group did offer legacy tariffs or meters that relied on RTS/DTS, other suppliers did so back in the day. All suppliers have a duty of care to help customers migrate over to smart meters, and this includes OVO. Your current supplier will know if you’re affected and they’ll be best placed to assist.

 

What will happen if I don’t get my meter replaced/upgraded?

 

Impending doom is sure to follow and there’ll be no way to escape your fate! And you really don’t want to be trapped in a temple of doom with a 500 stone boulder chasing after you…

 

What will actually happen is that your meter will stop working properly and it may mess up your bills pretty badly. If your heating and hot water are also controlled via RTS, it’s very likely that your house will turn into The North Pole or Sahara Desert… Not sure which one I’d prefer myself to be honest…

 

OVO have advised that they’re working incredibly hard to make sure the RTS closure is only done when all customers impacted can get a suitable solution. So this is worst case scenario if nothing was done and OVO were negligent.. something they have no plans to be.

 

Hold up! I’ve got Economy 7 and I’m with OVO?! What do I do?

 

Firstly, please don’t panic, OVO has considered this possibility. Economy 7 tariffs are fully supported by all suppliers which provide them, including OVO and there’s no plans to change that. If you’ve got a smart meter in Economy 7 mode, you’re good to go and the RTS shutdown won’t affect you.

 

However, if you are on Economy 7 or Economy 10 with any supplier and don’t have a smart meter, now might be a good time to consider getting a meter upgrade.

 

I’ve got one of these legacy meters, but I moved to a single-rate tariff. Does this still affect me?

 

Kind of. The good news is that it won’t hit you as hard, but you would still be affected to a degree. I’d recommend upgrading to a smart meter anyway to make sure your current meter doesn’t come back to haunt you later. Given that the meter is probably reaching end of life anyway and the certification is probably going to expire soon, my advice would be to say that you are affected.

 

As a bonus, replacing your meter might even let you get rid of that second MPAN (Meter Point Administration Number) if your RTS setup currently has one.

 

What will happen to my tariff?

 

Good question! Your tariff will be set free into the wild where it can relax and enjoy the luxury of retirement, safely looked after by the best hospitality in the jungle… Meanwhile, a Dungeoneer will cast some magic that summons a much younger and more modern tariff to take its place, just for you.

 

Spellcasting! R E F R E S H

 

Or I wish I could say that! The exact answer will depend on your circumstances - OVO have advised that this totally depends on the RTS arrangement in place and where in the UK you may be... I hear there are challenges being faced with replacing RTS meters that are being worked upon.  So I strongly recommend talking to your supplier about your options, or consider switching to a new supplier - you can sometimes get better deals by switching anyway.

 

Just a heads up though. Once you switch away from a legacy tariff, you won’t be able to get it back. Please make sure to choose your options carefully. Or as Treguard used to say…

The only way is onwards… There is no turning back.

 

 

I’ve got another question that’s not covered? I’m still confused and need more help! Where can I go?

 

Right here! These forums are the perfect place for getting help and advice like this, and we’d be more than happy to help you out. Feel free to create a new topic on the forums or reply to an existing one that’s similar and we’ll swoop into action.

Is it true that the RTS is being switched off in March 2023?

I have a RTS with two meters on a 2 phase supply due to having a warm air unit (10.5kwh) and five night storage heaters (10 kwh) and a water heater (max 6 kwh)

SSE say they cannot fit a smart meter because I have a 2 phase supply being metered.

Can anyone help me please?

Hey @lob184 ,

You may be in luck sooner or later. OVO is starting to roll out Three-Phase SMETS2 Smart Meters in low volumes at the moment, with a view to widening the availability as time passes. These meters are completely capable of taking on a 2-Phase Supply (and tons of other combos!). I’ve had confirmation of this previously from one of the OVO/SSE Smart Meter Engineers who I know well.

Hang in there a bit longer! I’ll ask @Tim_OVO to register your interest as well.

And yes, it is true that the RTS Service is shutting down sooner or later, but might now have to be delayed a bit longer.

Yes indeed, @lob184 check out this similar topic:

 

 

This was the advice earlier in the year (I’ll add you to my list to contact when this is rolled out to all regions):

 

As of August 2022, we're currently in a pilot, and will be contacting pilot-eligible customers (OVO customers on single rate tariffs) over the next few weeks and months. We are working with a select number of trained engineers around the country therefore we unfortunately can't install to just any willing participant (as much as we wish we could). Our advice is to make sure your contact details are up to date in your OVO account so that our teams can reach you.

 

 

Thank you both for all your help

No worries. We’ll be here if you need us for anything else!

Is it true that the RTS is being switched off in March 2023?

 

Page 9 of this report suggests the switch off is certainly going to be delayed

https://www.elexon.co.uk/documents/groups/pab/2022-meetings/260-september/pab260-08a-risk-evaluation-register-2023-2024/

I was told by SSE/OVO my mother will require a 3 Phase Smart Meter, but they currently have no ‘bandwidth’ to do anything until next Spring/Summer. Which suits me (her) just fine, it would be insane to attempt what will be a complex task in the dead of winter !

 

I have had it confirmed by Ofgem that the RTS arrangements have been extended and will remain in place until 31st March 2024.

Hopefully this extension will allow suppliers to develop and roll out acceptable replacement solutions for customers with “complex” (e.g. three phase) installations and also that Ofgem will monitor how things are going to determine whether the new shutdown date will be achievable.

I can confirm that OVO is definitely working on a Smart Meter based upgrade for RTS. I’ve seen it myself a few months ago.

Three-Phase isn’t “Complex” by itself though for the purposes of RTS, but that too is being worked on. OVO has started to rollout SMETS2 Three-Phase Smart Meters in limited numbers.

Just seen your recent comment. Smart meter based system for RTS - can you expand? May be a game changer?? 
 

still no contact from SSE on the switch off or a letter saying you need to take action. However I don’t really see why I need too. 
 

and levels of customer who have something with an RTS (all over the uk but Highlands and Islands especially) will need major support. 

It’s already here! The idea is that Smart Meters would be able to basically fulfil the same role that RTS used to do - and it already works great for Economy 7.

If you do not get the upgrade, RTS service will eventually fail which may prevent your meter from working as intended.

Interesting 

could be a future for THTC / Superdeal etc yet then? Especially as in load managed areas it’s difficult to change from the likes of THTC to even something like E10. 
 

would be interested to know if it could cope with the variability of THTC (I.e where you have between 5 and 12 hours off peak and the constant 24 hour off peak as well) 

THTC Support on Smart Meters is in development and OVO is currently working on that one - I’ve seen it myself.

It won’t involve twin element meters and it will only be one meter rather than two, in order to make it far less complicated. But again, it won’t use RTS - it’ll be controlled directly by the meter and where needed, remotely by SMETS Commands.

As far as I’m aware however… Superdeal is dead. It probably won’t survive the transition to Smart Meters

THTC Support on Smart Meters is in development and OVO is currently working on that one - I’ve seen it myself.

It won’t involve twin element meters and it will only be one meter rather than two, in order to make it far less complicated. But again, it won’t use RTS - it’ll be controlled directly by the meter and where needed, remotely by SMETS Commands.

 

Interesting, my mother (see my posts from Page 2 onwards in this thread) is on an afternoon boost scheme on the phase controlled by a mechanical timeswitch, and on Ec 7 (I think !) on the phase that is controlled by an RTS. It’s an utter dog’s breakfast, and I doubt the legacy SEB 1960s records, have survived the iterations to SSE, and now to OvO (though at present she is still an SSE branded customer (on quarterly billing) 

I have heard though that whatever the meter E9 or a THTC equivalent that THTC will still be twin Mpan so not sure how that will work. As I know the Ovo systems cannot currently support twin mpans 
however whatever replaces it, customers need to be assured that the benefits they have with the current setup remain. Any less and fuel poverty will most definitely increase. 

Ps I still only have 1 meter albeit twin element 

 

I saw examples of the new solution last year while visiting OVO’s head office and got to speak to someone who knows even more than I do. That person confirms that Twin-Element is very unlikely to be part of the new solution to reduce complications and simplify things massively.

I’m going round and round in circles trying to sort out my mother’s legacy Teleswitch, Dual Electrical Phase system . Linked here:-

I rang SSE Retail again a couple of weeks ago, and spent another hour going round the same loop I did in October 2023, and despite sending detailed drawings and a report back then, all that seems to have been lost.  They (SSE/OVO) suggested I talk to the DNO, because they claimed the DNO will need to upgrade the supply before they can do anything.

I did speak to the DNO, and sent them my report and drawings, and they confirmed, their involvement is NOT required. My mother has a dual 100 A phase supply, and it needs to stay that way, because of the huge load the Storage Heaters present.  They understood completely what needs to happen, OVO need to replace the time switches, those time-switches are NOT my mother’s property, and she should NOT have to pay any charges to upgrade them. The DNO said that OvO were just trying to palm me off (which I knew all along)...

Can somebody please advise me how on earth I can talk to a ‘Grown Up’ at Ovo to resolve this shambles ? 

Hi @MarkC63 ,

I’d suggest trying the dedicated team on 0345 071 7972. If you’ve already tried that, the other option is to wait for now as OVO will be in touch to get this sorted out anyway. There just isn’t quite a solution ready for your scenario yet.

Hi @MarkC63 ,

I’d suggest trying the dedicated team on 0345 071 7972. If you’ve already tried that, the other option is to wait for now as OVO will be in touch to get this sorted out anyway. There just isn’t quite a solution ready for your scenario yet.

 

Thanks @Blastoise186   I’ve spent over three hours of my life on 0345 071 7972, so I’m not wasting any more time with that !

I’ll just wait I guess. I’d really wanted this sorted this summer, while my 92 year old mother isn’t relying on her storage heating to be working. I can imagine when someone does turn up it’s not going to be a trivial or quick install job     

 

It’s not as complicated as you might think to do the upgrade itself. You just need to wait for Three-Phase S2 Meters to be available - that’s the real root cause here. OVO is trialling them in small numbers and the rollout will continue.

We’re keeping track of forum members who are interested in this. I’ll get @Tim_OVO to add your name to the list.

Hey @MarkC63,

 

It’s not as complicated as you might think to do the upgrade itself. You just need to wait for Three-Phase S2 Meters to be available - that’s the real root cause here. OVO is trialling them in small numbers and the rollout will continue.

We’re keeping track of forum members who are interested in this. I’ll get @Tim_OVO to add your name to the list.

 

An update on the availability of Polyphase Smart Meters:

 

Polyphase (3-Phase) Smart Meters Released! Following the completion of the full pilot at the end of last year, Kaifa polyphase smart meter stock has arrived.

  

  • Single-rate/unrestricted meters only (i.e. no Economy 7 etc.)

  • Stock delivered to OVO 10th April so bookings can occur after this date

 

Contact our Support Team to book in, they’ll then assign the booking to a qualified engineer. 

 

The next steps will be bookings for Economy 7 Polyphase- we’ll let you know when there is a date for this release.

 

Hey @MarkC63,

 

It’s not as complicated as you might think to do the upgrade itself. You just need to wait for Three-Phase S2 Meters to be available - that’s the real root cause here. OVO is trialling them in small numbers and the rollout will continue.

We’re keeping track of forum members who are interested in this. I’ll get @Tim_OVO to add your name to the list.

 

An update on the availability of Polyphase Smart Meters:

 

Polyphase (3-Phase) Smart Meters Released! Following the completion of the full pilot at the end of last year, Kaifa polyphase smart meter stock has arrived.

  

  • Single-rate/unrestricted meters only (i.e. no Economy 7 etc.)

  • Stock delivered to OVO 10th April so bookings can occur after this date

 

Contact our Support Team to book in, they’ll then assign the booking to a qualified engineer. 

 

The next steps will be bookings for Economy 7 Polyphase- we’ll let you know when there is a date for this release.

 

Thank you @Emmanuelle_OVO 

Is there any way I can get my mother’s account , and its Three separate MPRNs (she is still with ‘original’ SSE on quarterly billing) tagged with this issue, so she gets notification etc when  Economy 7 Polyphase is available for an install booking ?

 

Hey @MarkC63,

 

We’ll update these topics when Economy 7 Polyphase is available 😊 It might also be worth contacting the Support Team so they can put a note on the account. 

Thank you very much, all of you, I feel reassured!  I’ve double-checked my letter and it’s definitely our own home’s THTC account that’s being migrated, not the single-meter holiday cottage, so looks like it’s starting to roll out to the general public.

 

We’ve been looking at the Quantums for a while, so I think we’ll probably do it. 

Just to add a twist to this, I got an SSE email today to say my direct debit was changing, logged in to have a look at the most recent bill - and the single meter holiday cottage has been moved over to Ovo despite the letter saying it was our own house moving! 

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