Fully Operational: Maximising Consumer Protection and Transparency in Smart Metering

Fully Operational: Maximising Consumer Protection and Transparency in Smart Metering 2.65 MB

Our latest research shows some unwelcome trends in people’s experiences of smart meters. Consumer satisfaction with smart meters has decreased and more people are regularly having to give manual readings. 

Despite a continued increase in smart meters officially operating in “smart mode,” households feel let down by meters that aren’t working as expected.

At a time that bills are rising, people are likely to place even higher value on their smart meter working as it should, so they can track their usage and avoid catch-up bills. As low carbon technologies become more widely adopted, there are also growing numbers of consumers who need a functional smart meter to access energy tariffs with the best value. In addition to the proposals we made in our "State of the Smart" report in February 2026, this paper sets out two key recommendations to help turn these unwelcome trends around:

1) We recommend that Ofgem presses ahead with new Guaranteed Standards for smart meters. This would require suppliers to make automatic compensation payments to consumers with a smart meter not operating in smart mode. Importantly, Ofgem should stick to the plan of including scenarios where other organisations are involved. To ensure the Guaranteed Standards are taken seriously, we think Ofgem should publicly report on energy suppliers' compliance with them.

2) We recommend that the government updates the definition of an “operating” smart meter in public reporting. Citizens Advice proposes that a smart meter should be considered “operating” if:

a) The supplier is receiving automatic (remote) meter readings from the smart meter; and

b) The customer receives an accurate bill as a result of the smart meter operating as described in (a); or

c) For smart prepayment customers, the customer has not experienced any failures when topping up in the last 30 days.