What is a Smart Meter, and should I get one?

What is a Smart Meter?

Smart Meters are devices that replace traditional gas and electricity meters. They send information about your energy usage directly to your suppliers, which not only removes the need for you to supply manual meter readings, but also means no more estimated bills.

Smart Meters communicate wirelessly with an in-home display unit, a small device with a digital screen showing real-time energy usage and cost.

The government target is for Smart Meters to be offered to all UK households by 2024.

Smart Meter in-Home Display Unit

Why should I get a Smart Meter?

Smart Meters not only save you time as you no longer need to read your gas and electricity meters, but they can also help you save money on your energy bills in two ways.

Firstly, you will never need to pay an over-inflated estimated bill again. No more meter reading means no more forgetting to send figures to your energy supplier, or being out when your energy supplier representative knocks on the door needing to gain access to your meters. Your Smart Meter send information about your energy usage directly to your supplier, making the whole process that much more streamlined.

Secondly, and more significantly, your in-home display unit shows your real-time energy usage. This helps you to understand where your money is being spent, and also provides motivation to make more energy conscious decisions as you can see on the screen the savings you are achieving by making small changes such as turning devices off rather than leaving them on standby, or turning the heating down a degree or two.

What are the issues with Smart Meters?

Old-style first generation Smart Meters were beset with issues; not only was the rollout by energy companies much slower than the government anticipated, but often the ‘smart’ features stopped working if you switched energy supplier, and some energy suppliers did not appear to be able to offer Smart Meters at all.

The second generation Smart Meters not being installed should solve this issue, as they all connect to the same central wireless network, no matter what supplier you are with at the time of fitting. This should also mean that all energy suppliers can now use Smart Meters.

The plan is that every UK household should have been offered a Smart Meter by 2024, however connection is still more challenging for homes with thick walls or where the gas and electricity meters are far apart, as well as those in high-rise blocks of flats, in rural areas, so some people may have to wait longer for installation. 

How do I get a Smart Meter?

Find out how to contact your energy supplier about Smart Meter installation on the Smart Energy GB website

The device itself, fitting and setup are all free; this usually takes about 2 hours and someone from the household needs to be present throughout the installation.

In some cases, your energy supply may need to be switched off for a short time during the process. Once the Smart Meter is up and running, your engineer should demonstrate how to use the device, and answer any questions you may have.

To get a Smart Meter, contact your energy supplier. One easy way to do this is to visit the Smart Energy GB website and enter the name of your energy supplier to be taken to a web page explaining the next steps.

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We have carried out a COVID-19 risk assessment to keep our customers and engineers safe. We have comprehensive PPE, cleaning, handwashing and hygiene procedures in place, and will take all reasonable steps to maintain social distancing at all times. 

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We guarantee we will not be beaten on price. In the unlikely event that you receive a lower quote from any other Gas Safe registered installer, we will match their quote and provide you with your first year service free of charge.

COVID-Secure Contractor

We have carried out a COVID-19 risk assessment to keep our customers and engineers safe. We have comprehensive PPE, cleaning, handwashing and hygiene procedures in place, and will take all reasonable steps to maintain social distancing at all times. 

Checkatrade information for Smart Plumbing

Price-Match Promise

We guarantee we will not be beaten on price. In the unlikely event that you receive a lower quote from any other Gas Safe registered installer, we will match their quote and provide you with your first year service free of charge.

Contact us:

Call 01484 940930
Online Quote
Online Quote