As technology continues to improve, we’re seeing a rise in home gadgets to make our lives a little easier. No more is truer than the introduction of the smart meter.
Designed to take the hassle out of energy management and cut energy costs, there’s plenty of reasons why you should consider switching one.
You Can Track Your Habits to Make Savings
The first thing that springs to the mind of energy consumers when deciding on any change is ‘will it cost me?’ The answer to that is: no, in fact, it could save you a great deal more.
Smart meters can give you a better overview of your day-to-day usage; down to specific feedback over household appliances. By checking your meter’s information now and again, you’ll be able to see what you use the most energy on. From there, you can work out where you conserve power to reduce your bills.
They Can Help You Spot Faulty Appliances
Speaking of uses for meter feedback, a smart meter can help you identify issues around the home. Irregular readings can be a sign that you need to look at your devices to see what has changed. From there, you can get it safely fixed and avoid overspending.
As the information a smart meter provides is so accurate, you should also be able to identify faults in the meter itself. If you notice any unusual spikes in payments, this could be the first sign of a problem. As you can check these meters so easily, you should be able to get it addressed quickly.
On some smart meter models, they may provide you with an error message if you run into any faults. The process of fixing your meter is simple too. Just contact your supplier and explain the problems you’re having. Your supplier may send an examiner round to investigate and if your meter needs to be removed, you will be given a temporary meter.
Say Goodbye to Estimations and Hello to Accurate Bills
Plenty of people who currently use smart meters prefer them because they are far more reliable. By automatically sending updates to your supplier, you will no longer need to worry about surprising results on invoices.
On a digital display, you’ll be able to view your usage by pounds and pence.
You Can Get Greater Range of Tariffs
The government plans to put a greater focus on smart meters to improve the UK’s methods around contracts. A grand rollout is planned for 2020 which means that the market will be putting a greater focus on smart plans.
Most major suppliers will have smart tariffs available and some will offer lower prices for choosing one. As the years roll on, we’re likely to see more discounts and variety for smart meter users.
They’re Great for Prepayment Schemes
If you like top-up style plans, you’ll be happy to hear that many smart meters include prepayment options. Very much like pay-as-you-go plans for mobiles, it allows you to top up your allowance freely using a card or token.
App friendly smart meters will allow you to hook up your phone to your meter to make payments. If you use both gas and electricity, it will even give you the options to transfer credit between the two.
It Helps the Environment
Naturally, by installing a gadget that helps reduce your energy consumption you will be helping the environment. The readings taken by smart meters also provide helpful information in the form of a forecast. Suppliers will analyse the data nationwide to build eco-friendly that benefit both consumers and our planet. If you haven’t already looked into green power, it’s worth taking a look at.