Our Octopus smart meter went mute, now our bills are increasing – CRANE IN THE CASE

My wife and I have had nothing but issues with our smart gas meter.

There is a problem with the connection, meaning it is not ‘smart’ and readings are not automatically sent to our supplier, Octopus Energy.

We are disabled and due to the location of the meter, we are unable to read it, so unless Octopus sends someone to read it for us, our bills are based on estimated usage.

Last year we thought we were being overcharged, so we complained to Octopus and then to the Energy Ombudsman.

Our bill was corrected, Octopus paid us £200 compensation and promised to send a meter reader every three months.

Then in November 2023 someone read the meter and we were charged £400, which we paid, and were told everything was up to date.

But in December we received another bill saying we had been undercharged on the previous bill and owed £500 more.

This was followed by a gas bill estimated at over £1000 in March 2024 and another of £392 in April. Our meter was not read again until June this year.

The estimates we have been given are much higher than our previous or current consumption. We are now told that we owe £1,423, which we strongly reject. We are still making payments, but we have not paid off the debt in full because we are convinced that it is not correct.

I feel like we are being punished for not providing meter readings, something we can physically do.

My wife and I are in desperate need of help. We don’t know what to do and we are scared of what might happen on the next statement. AW, Halifax

Helen Crane, consumer rights campaigner at This is Money, replies: Like many people, you agreed to a smart meter thinking it would make your life easier.

Many people love their smart meters, saying they save them the hassle of sending meter readings and allow them to more easily keep track of how much gas or electricity they are using.

This is all very well, as long as the device actually works.

One of the many problems with smart meters is that they tend to become “dumb,” meaning they stop sending readings, the display in the home no longer works, and they are no longer better than the old version.

In his case, Octopus told him that he was not “communicating” properly with his smart electricity meter.

It was even less fit for purpose than his old device. Before it was replaced, his traditional gas meter was at eye level, allowing him to read it easily.

But when the smart device was installed, it needed to be in a different location because it communicates via radio waves and requires a strong signal.

It was installed outside and low to the ground, so you and your wife can’t bend down to read it.

That was fine when the readings were sent automatically, but once the meter stopped working it meant it was impossible to send your usage to Octopus.

As you say, this meant they started billing you based on estimates and were convinced that Octopus was getting it wrong, a theory that was proven wrong by the Energy Ombudsman’s investigation a year ago.

I guess some readers might be wondering why you didn’t just ask to go back to your old manual meter at this point.

The answer is that energy companies want as many customers as possible to adopt the smart system, as it saves them the expense and administration involved in performing manual readings.

So once you have one, most won’t let you go back to an old meter.

The Ombudsman said Octopus should look into ways to fix its smart meter, but so far this has not happened.

It cannot simply be moved, as moving it more than a metre must be done by the grid authority, the company that owns and operates the power grid.

Unfortunately, this left him stuck with his dumb “smart” device, and predictably, his bills started looking suspiciously expensive again a few months later.

Additionally, you said the time periods on the bills were confusing and it seemed like you were being charged again for usage you had already paid for.

This could have been avoided if Octopus sent out meter readers every three months, as it promises to do for all customers on its priority service register, mostly those who are sick or elderly. Instead, they waited seven months.

The Ombudsman who responded to your initial complaint had some criticisms about Octopus’ handling of meter readings.

Octopus uses an outside company, TMA, to go to its clients’ homes and perform readings.

In his response to her complaint, the Ombudsman said Octopus had attributed its incorrect invoices, in part, to the fact that the company was having trouble keeping its appointments.

But the Ombudsman concluded in his report that he could not shift blame so easily, replying: “It is Octopus’ responsibility, as your supplier, to ensure that it does everything it can to ensure that these appointments with meter readers are held.

“I therefore hope that in the future, if your gas meter cannot be brought into operation, Octopus Energy will do everything it can to ensure that your meter is read on a quarterly basis.”

Following your complaint, you told Octopus that regular readings were still not being performed and that you thought you were being overcharged again.

But you told me that they simply “passed from one person to another, with no one knowing what had happened before, and each forced to parrot the same commonplaces.”

For a company that prides itself on “award-winning customer service,” that’s not a good look.

With nowhere else to turn, you contacted me and I asked Octopus why your meter was still not reading and why your bills weren’t correct.

He said that after he contacted me, the meter reading he had carried out in June had been taken into account, reducing his bill from £1423 to £622, which shows why it is so important that these readings are carried out.

The question also arises: why do the estimated bills from energy companies so often differ from customers’ actual gas or electricity consumption? Unfortunately, Octopus is not the only company that thinks this way.

The firm admitted it had mishandled his case, saying: ‘Our handling of this case has fallen far short of the customer service standards we set for ourselves, and has undoubtedly been stressful for (AW and his wife).’

An additional £250 was credited to your account as a result of this incident.

The spokesman added: “We have made it clear to TMA, the company that carries out the meter readings, that these must be carried out regularly and can in fact be accessed without entering the property, so there is no excuse for this not to happen every quarter.

‘We have provided a number for them to contact us directly if problems like this occur again and have conveyed our sincerest apologies.’

I sincerely hope your silly smart meter doesn’t cause you any more stress.

CRANE OVER THE CASE