Smart meter readings ‘six times too high’

SMART meters are giving readings up to six times higher than the energy consumed by households when connected to energy-saving light bulbs, according to scientists.

Five different types of smart meters produced readings up to 583 per cent higher than the actual energy used, a study by the University of Twente Enschede in Holland found.

It is the first proof that smart meters, which the Government wants in every household by 2020 to improve the accuracy of people’s energy bills, are producing readings that are too high.

Scientists declined to name the models of the wayward meters but confirmed that those which gave wrong readings in its tests have been sold and installed in the UK.

It means as many as five million UK households may have potentially received incorrect readings. The inaccuracies are being blamed on the design of the meters and the increasing use of modern energy-efficient appliances.

“Green” devices such as energy-sav- ing light bulbs, heaters, LED bulbs and dimmers change the shape of electric currents which can result in a distorted reading, the study found.

The greatest inaccuracies were recorded when dimmers combined with energy-saving light bulbs and LED bulbs were connected to the system.

Researchers tested the meters by connecting them to different devices found in a typical home. After a week, they compared the amount of energy

put into the system with the amount of current registered by the meter and calculated the differences. They found that five out of nine smart meter models tested gave too high readings.

Smart meters digitally send readings to the electricity or gas supplier to ensure more accurate energy bills. They also have monitors so customers can better understand their energy use.

Under Government plans which are expected to cost £11 billion, every home in Britain will have a smart meter installed by 2020. Critics have said it is unclear whether the meters will save consumers any money and claim it could even end up costing them more, as they are paying for the roll-out through higher energy bills.

According to a report by First Utility, one of the UK’s biggest energy suppliers, households face a 42 per cent rise in bills in order to support government green energy smart meters.

It was reported yesterday that a number of SSE customers had been wrongly told by their smart meters that they had used thousands of pounds worth of energy, with one customer’s display showing more than £30,000 for a single day.

The study’s author, Prof Leferink, said the researchers were “flabbergasted by our results”. He added: “The study was carried out in a laboratory setting. If you looked at ones in homes I don’t expect they would be 500 or 600 per cent out. But what we have shown is the reading can clearly deviate a lot from the power customers are actually consuming.”

A spokesman for the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy insisted that smart meters have to comply with regulations which mandate high standards of accuracy.