What are the costs and savings of smart meters?
1. Will my business be charged for a smart meter?
No, you don't have to pay anything for your smart meter or its installation. Just like traditional meters, the cost of the smart meter and that of its installation are absorbed into the operational costs of suppliers.
2. How much money will a smart meter save me?
Smart meters on their own don’t help you save money. But having the in-depth insight from the data will help you be more aware of the energy you're using so you can make your business more efficient. And when you take steps to be more efficient, you’ll be able to see the results of your efforts in your bills.
3. Do smart meters require a specific tariff?
No, they don’t. You can have a smart meter installed now regardless of what type of tariff you have.
4. Is there a maintenance cost associated with smart meters?
There is no cost to you as a customer because you don’t have to do anything to maintain it. We might come and check the meter from time to time and that is covered as part of our business costs.
5. Will I be fined if I don't want a smart meter?
You have the right to refuse a smart meter and you won’t receive any fines for doing that. However, smart meters bring benefits such as automatic reads, accurate bills and give you a better way to manage your energy use. They will also form the basis of the new smart grid so we would recommend having one installed.