Smart meter installations fall by 10%

The number of smart meters being fitted in homes fell 10 per cent in the first three months of the year, continuing a long-term decline in new installations.

Latest government figures show 780,000 smart meters were fitted by large energy firms between January and March, down from around 870,000 in the previous three months.

More than half – 56 per cent – of all energy meters are now smart meters, with another 7 per cent being smart meters operating as traditional ‘dumb’ meters.

Peaked: We may have reached the peak for how many homes will get smart meters fitted voluntarily, according to major energy firms

The number of new smart meters being fitted has fallen overall since a peak in 2017.

Last year, energy regulator Ofgem fined six of the UK’s biggest energy firms £10.8million for missing smart meter installation targets.

The Government wants smart meters to be fitted to 80 per cent of homes by the end of 2025.

Smart meters were introduced in 2011 as a way of helping households stay in control of their energy bills and, in turn, keep bills down.

They are fitted in homes to replace more traditional meters, including prepayment key meters. 

Suppliers say they provide more accurate and up-to-date readings, so customers only pay for the energy they have used.

But energy firms are struggling due to most households that would chose to have a smart meter already having one, with resistance from many of the remainder.

By last summer, energy suppliers said they had exhausted the ‘low-hanging fruit’ of households who want a smart meter, according to a report from the National Audit Office.

The regions with the highest proportion of smart meters are Bolsover, Chesterfield, County Durham, Rotherham, North Kesteven and Mansfield, all with 74 per cent or more of their domestic electricity meters being smart meters.

As a rule of thumb, the higher the population density in an area or the more remote it is, the fewer electricity smart meters are installed.

In Inner London some regions have just 30-40 per cent of domestic homes fitted with smart meters. 

The lowest smart meter installations (>20 per cent) are on islands off the coast of Britain: the Isles of Scilly, Na h-Eileanan Siar, the Orkney Islands and the Shetland Islands.

This is due to ‘operational reasons’, according to the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero. 

The charity Citizens Advice said it is worried about households losing out due to smart meters not working as they should.

Gillian Cooper, director of energy at Citizens Advice, said: ‘Smart meters can help households save money on their energy bills, but today’s figures show millions are missing out on these benefits because their meters aren’t working as they should.

‘This is just the tip of the iceberg. Our research shows that 20 per cent of households with smart meters still have to submit regular manual readings. And nearly a third experienced issues with their in-home display.

‘Suppliers have been too slow to fix issues with people’s smart meters. We need new rules to ensure energy suppliers identify and fix problems as quickly as possible.’

Do I have to get a smart meter?

Smart meters are not compulsory and it is up to you whether you get one installed.

You will likely be offered one by your supplier if you don’t already have one, but you are well within your right to refuse.

If you do refuse, remember that you won’t have access to all energy tariffs, which means you might end up paying more for your energy than you otherwise could.

Earlier this month Chris O’Shea, the head of British Gas’s parent company, Centrica, said all homes should be made to have a smart meter to help the Government meet its net zero targets.