Smart meters are one of those innovations that should maden energy use better in theory. However, implementation has had its pitfalls. The first generation of them stopped working if you changed suppliers, amazing that anyone would have thought implementing such technology was a good idea! Then recently there's been the scandal of energy suppliers remotely switching customers onto prepayment meters without warning. There are potential benefits, one could have reduced rates at certain times of day for running, for example, washing machines or dish washers. In my opinion energy companies have destroyed consumer trust with their recent actions so I'll wait until all the technical and regulatory issues get resolved. My supplier, Ecotricity, are happy with me not having one provided I supply regular, monthly meter readings.One interesting point: a friend had a smart meter installed a while ago; it doesn't work, unfortunately it uses the 4G network to communicate with his energy company but his steel structured block acts as a very effective Faraday cage ... must happen in a lot of cases!
Michael Ixer ● 815d