Britons in the dark about smart meters, set to cost £13.4 billion

The Government plans to put a new ‘smart meter’ in every home by 2020 to reduce energy consumption and prepare Britain for the eventual move to a low-carbon ‘smart grid’. The smart electricity and gas meters provide accurate real time information on energy consumption and the Government have stated that this will help consumers save money on their bills and to reduce their carbon emissions.

The £13.4 billion investment programme is expected to start rolling out soon, yet new research shows that 57% of people don’t even know what a smart meter is. This, uSwitch.com suggests, means that the Government and energy industry could face an uphill battle persuading consumers that they should be picking up the tab.

In addition, the uSwitch.com report states that the total cost of securing the country’s longer-term energy supplies, reducing carbon emissions and rolling-out smart meters into all homes is expected to hit £233.5 billion, which could add £548 a year onto household energy bills for the next 15 years. However, only 19% of consumers believe that a significant increase in household energy bills is a price worth paying for this.

uSwitch.com argues that a consumer education programme is now needed to get people on side and make them aware of the benefits. For example, smart meters allow consumers to accurately monitor their energy usage, which can help to reduce consumption and therefore cost. Almost three quarters (71%) of those surveyed said they would use smart meters to help cut the cost of bills and over half (53%) would use it just to be reassured that their energy bills are accurate. Just under a quarter (24%) would use the information to better manage their payments to their supplier and to avoid going into debt[5].

Will Marples, energy expert at uSwitch.com, said:

“The switch to smart meters could be a disaster unless people fully understand the reasoning behind the move and how it will benefit them in the long run. Before starting the roll-out the Government has to get consumer buy-in.”

“Consumer education is a priority if the roll-out is to be a success, but it’s also important that the final specification of the meters meets consumer needs and gives householders all the information they need in a simple to use format. Finally, with householders likely to be bearing the brunt of the costs, consumers need reassurance that the roll-out will be efficient, speedy and as cost effective as possible. At the end of the day household energy bills are likely to increase substantially and consumers will be looking for value-for-money in return.”