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smart meters not connected and incorrect readings after meter install

  • 9 January 2021
  • 30 replies
  • 283 views
H
Userlevel 1

in every aspect

 

and i never thought i would type that

 

customer services are a joke

 

dont swap on to smart meters either...they will bung an extra 1200 kwh on for good measure ( 2 months electicity for me)

 

might be a genuine mistake… but after 5 emails now and waiting for over a month for them to connect the stupid meters i wont be holding my breath

 

vey very disapointed

icon

Best answer by Duppy 10 January 2021, 09:59

@Hilts1lotus

I can understand your frustration, but with a little patience it will be sorted.

Firstly the Pure Planet preferred communication tool is Wattbot in the help and support section of your account. If you type message the team first any follow up will be sent to the team  ( what PP call customer service ) replies within two working days.

When your meters were changed, did the engineer explain why it wouldn't connect, I know from experience that when the engineer submits a report, they don't always get followed up immediately, so go to Wattbot and inform the team there.

Regarding the reading, did you read the meter yourself before it was changed or did you ask the engineer to give  you the reading, he should have fitted a sticker on the new meter giving old serial number and the closing reading, can you check if this was done and the information is correct, take a photo and attach to the Wattbot message.

You can read the meters even if they are not connected to the hub, but you need to wake up/ illuminate the display by pressing the green button, and if you wake the meter before taking the above photo it will give PP more of the information required to help sort it out.

Any statements, estimates used since the meter change will be corrected once the various issues are sorted out, and if your consumption has been steady then your payments will be on track. The statement you have received is not a demand for more money, and as said it will correct itself

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30 replies

Angelabikerbabe
Userlevel 7
Badge +9

Hi
You're talking to fellow PP customers on this forum, a forum for customers to ask questions  and help each other out.

We don't have access to customers accounts, so can't comment on specific accounts. 

So, do you have a specific question?  

(BTW, I don't work for PP. I'm just a customer, like you)
woz
Userlevel 7
Badge +11

@Hilts1lotus I assume from what you’ve posted that your meter or meters haven’t been changed recently?

(I’m asking for good reasons)

Have you checked that the serials on your meters match what’s in your account?

Smart meter rollout is being done geographically, so not a lot can be done about that, but that’s probably a blessing in disguise because you don’t want to muddy the waters before the (errant?) 1200kWh issue is sorted.

If you’d like to tell us how the 1200kWh error has come about we can possibly offer some advice; was it your changeover reading when you joined or an estimated reading you don’t agree with or something else?

 

If it was your opening reading it can be disputed if below a certain tolerance, but you should be aware that you won’t pay for the same energy twice, what you pay pp you won’t pay the previous provider (so if pp are cheaper it would actually be to your advantage to leave it and of course vice versa)

If it was an estimate it doesn’t matter at all because it will correct when you submit readings.

There’s no such thing as “adding on” -ultimately you will only be charged for what you use. 

Emails are not the best or the preferred way to communicate with PP,  you’d be better to use help&support>ask a question when logged in (persist through instant bot replies until message goes to the team) responses in 2 working days. That is their customer support channel.

That’s the best advice I can give considering what little info there is in your post. Feel free to vent if it makes you feel better but I have one question, in view of what I’ve written above what’s your actual loss at the moment? Your direct debit will remain the same until the account is reviewed at which point it may or may not change.

I don’t work for PP

later thought, I haven’t dealt with BG for quite a while but when I did deal with them I thought their customer service was quite good, has it deteriorated perhaps due to Covid?

Also if your meters are already smart they won’t be replaced but updated - since you didn’t say what type they are one can’t assume.

 

H
Userlevel 1

thank you for the replies…

 

so…

 

i gave a meter reading 5th december

 

15th december they come to fit smart meters

 

the guy leave unable to connect them to the hub or whatever it is...ie they wont be able to read them remotely

 

so they (PP) are meant to get in touch with in a fortnight

 

they dont/havent yet...despite 5 emails to them

 

best of all, obviously a new meter for elec and gas now

 

the closing read they have used is 1200 kwh more than what i gave as my actual read 10 days earlier… bearing in mind i use every month approx 500 units give or take, i need to dispute this with them as theyare now trying to say i use over 2 months electicity in 10 days

 

cant talk to anyone 

 

i have emailed a further 3 times this week and no reply

 

covid has hit us bad and may not seem a lot of money to you guys buts it is now a huge amount to us

 

really unhappy that in this modern day i canttalk to anyone and that after a month now and numerous emails no one has had the decency to get in touch

 

their idea to put to smart meter...really wish i hadnt bothered as now i cant even read my meter and potentially guna be charged for £150 of electricity i never used 

H
Userlevel 1

elec meter read given on decemebr 7th was 59608

 

they claiming closing read on 15th december was 60752

 

an increase/usage of 1144 in 8 days

 

so fairly obvious bearing in mind on average i use about 500 units per month/125 ish per week ish the read on 15th december should have been 59752

 

they have even estimated on this months bill that i have used 496 and every bill meter read given over last 18 mths has varied between 450 -600 depending on time of year etc…

 

but as it stands i am being charged the wrong amount

 

and because they refuse to talk to me/no one has bothered to get in touch i am now absolutely spitting

 

when if they had done their jobs properly and actually owned a phone this could have been sorted weeks ago

 

if i dont hear back from them on monday i am cancelling my DD 

H
Userlevel 1

ihave been with them since september btw..so have given monthly reads for that time and all been as stated approx 50 per month

D
Userlevel 7
Badge +8

@Hilts1lotus

I can understand your frustration, but with a little patience it will be sorted.

Firstly the Pure Planet preferred communication tool is Wattbot in the help and support section of your account. If you type message the team first any follow up will be sent to the team  ( what PP call customer service ) replies within two working days.

When your meters were changed, did the engineer explain why it wouldn't connect, I know from experience that when the engineer submits a report, they don't always get followed up immediately, so go to Wattbot and inform the team there.

Regarding the reading, did you read the meter yourself before it was changed or did you ask the engineer to give  you the reading, he should have fitted a sticker on the new meter giving old serial number and the closing reading, can you check if this was done and the information is correct, take a photo and attach to the Wattbot message.

You can read the meters even if they are not connected to the hub, but you need to wake up/ illuminate the display by pressing the green button, and if you wake the meter before taking the above photo it will give PP more of the information required to help sort it out.

Any statements, estimates used since the meter change will be corrected once the various issues are sorted out, and if your consumption has been steady then your payments will be on track. The statement you have received is not a demand for more money, and as said it will correct itself

Growing OLD is inevitable, growing UP is optional
H
Userlevel 1

hi 

 

thank you for your time to reply

so…

 

he just said they werent connecting to PP so maybe an issue there end

 

no stickers or anything on the meter

 

wasnt shown how to use it as that would be done when they came back

 

he said he had taken a photo of the meter for the last read

 

didnt think i needed to read myself as had only read myself the week before and was a right faff as right on the turn so i originally did what they have done and mis read… however when i went to submit my reads it was massively up, so i went and rechecked and realsised what i had done

 

i’ll try with this watt bott thing

 

thank you again for your time x

 

25 quid

Good luck! I’m surprised there’s no sticker with the previous reading. I thought that was a requirement of an install...

woz
Userlevel 7
Badge +11

@Hilts1lotus 

and just to say your new meters will have started from zero. The old reading can take weeks to filter through, but it should do and will be corrected. I fully understand why you’re frustrated re the communications, but as I pointed out at the start your DD hasn’t changed so there is no impact to your payments. 

 

 

G

Good luck! I’m surprised there’s no sticker with the previous reading. I thought that was a requirement of an install...

What sticker? My electricity smart meter was installed last January but no sticker. I was simply advised the old reading was being sent in. I had taken one myself to play safe. The new meter started at zero.

As many have said here it will balance out provided readings have been sent in, which it seems they have.

I agree the help system leaves an awful lot to be desired but it does function.

Richard
25 quid

Maybe Smart meters don’t get a sticker? 

I do know that traditional (gas) meters get a sticker. Maybe Electricity meters don’t get a sticker?

G

What ought to happen is the engineer gives to the householder a copy of the reading he has taken and which is being sent to the service provider. That did not happen in my case a year ago. No idea what happens with the gas smart meter. Still waiting for mine to be installed.

Richard
25 quid

This is my experience: 

Out with the old
In with the new

 

Gwyndy

My swap wasn’t done by Magnum, but if memory serves me correctly, I was given a card with the old meter reading and serial number scribbled on it - there’s no ‘sticker’ on the new Smart Electricity meter.

More importantly what, if anything can we do to help @Hilts1lotus get some sense from someone at Pure Planet?

 

I'm not a Pure Planet Staff Member, just a customer, like 99.99% of the other people in this community. Any advice provided is based upon answers previously supplied - either by myself, other customers, or Pure Planet Staff (aka @Marc, @Mads, and @Nataly).
H
Userlevel 1

My swap wasn’t done by Magnum, but if memory serves me correctly, I was given a card with the old meter reading and serial number scribbled on it - there’s no ‘sticker’ on the new Smart Electricity meter.

More importantly what, if anything can we do to help @Hilts1lotus get some sense from someone at Pure Planet?

 

thankyou x

i will let you know as and when they get in touch and what the outcome is

if they dont get in touch by end of play tomorrow, tuesday 12th, giving them the 48 hours reply promise on the watt bott thing, i will cancel my DD… they normally are pretty quick when folk do that...surprise surprise…

 

really could be doing with out this on going stress at the moment as covid in our lives but if i dont act now then they will get away with it…

 

shame nearly a week on and i havent been able to speak to ANYONE

 

shame a month on and still no one has been in touch to sort my meters out

 

shame on PP :-(

 

 

Nataly
Rank

Hey @Hilts1lotus and welcome to the Community. 

Glad to see you’ve received lots of help and advice from other Community members :thumbsup:

Sounds like there may be a delay getting everything set up and running properly following your meter exchange. Just wanted to reassure you that the readings on your statement will update your account balance, but doesn’t mean your Direct Debit amount would be changed. 

If the readings are incorrect, our Member Services team will be able to get this updated, and a corrected statement sent to you. :slight_smile:

I checked this out with them ^, and they’ve let me know they sent an email on 4 January - did you receive this OK? It’s worth checking your junk/spam mail just in case too. It had subject “FOR INFO: Your complaint” if that helps locate it! 

H
Userlevel 1

hi 

 

yes i did receive it

 

this was regards the lack of response to the meter fiasco

 

had no reply or acknowledgement with regards the actual meter readings issue, only an automated reply to say they have received my complaint

 

thank you

G

Or you could use the old fashioned method of snail mail addressing your letter for the personal attention of the Chairman or CEO. Their address is  Cramer House, The Square, Lower Bristol Road, Bath BA2 3BH.

It only has two directors - Christopher James Alliot and Andrew Ralston. This ought to get to someone who can wield a big stick.

Although the chances are high this correspondence has been read and that stick may already be being waved! I hope so. Whilst it is a simple matter from what I read, silence does not help.

Richard
woz
Userlevel 7
Badge +11

@Hilts1lotus

I have to say that cancelling the DD is not the best way forward. Frustrated though you may be it’s a bit like throwing your toys out of the pram. It will (quite rightly) put you in breach of contract and just create more administration for everyone including you, but more to the point it’s not justified AND I very much doubt it will result in things going any faster.

As I keep on saying you haven’t suffered a loss, your DD’s haven’t changed and although your balance is incorrect it will be corrected. 

I think a little patience is called for here especially since PP are relying on info from a third party. 

I don’t work for PP, the above is my opinion.

myauntie
Badge +3

Good luck! I’m surprised there’s no sticker with the previous reading. I thought that was a requirement of an install...

What sticker? My electricity smart meter was installed last January but no sticker. I was simply advised the old reading was being sent in. I had taken one myself to play safe. The new meter started at zero.

As many have said here it will balance out provided readings have been sent in, which it seems they have.

I agree the help system leaves an awful lot to be desired but it does function.

I had the same experience @G4RHL - Both my Electricity & Gas meters were replaced and I was not provided with any meter readings (nor were there stickers left on the new meters). 

woz
Userlevel 7
Badge +11

@Hilts1lotus 

The complaints procedure(and for anyone else reading this in the future)

 

 

G

Complaints procedures. Hmmm…… I have found taking these routes often has things disappearing and mostly organisations don’t uphold the complaint. The procedure exists because it is thought there has to be one. In my experience, unless I have bypassed such or been able to a take matter to an ombudsman there is a degree of whitewashing. Even ombudsmen sometimes lack the requisite knowledge to handle a matter. As I have found out on a few occasions in my professional life and got them to think again.

Richard
D
Userlevel 7
Badge +8

On the subject of the stickers on meters, I checked mine today, the gas meter does have an exchange sticker, the electric doesn't have one. It seems that only the gas has a sticker for some reason

Growing OLD is inevitable, growing UP is optional
woz
Userlevel 7
Badge +11

@G4RHL 

You can’t go to the Ombudsman before you’ve exhausted the complaints procedure, I thought it might be useful to re-iterate it here.

I must admit I was surprised at the timescales mentioned at the start, but then there is the 8 weeks….

G

Agreed. There is that frustration. Sometimes there is no ombudsman. In most cases a complaint can be sorted in hours but 8 weeks is taken. Anyway, I think here the query can be resolved. Issues like this one  should be dealt with in hours. Probably less when the relevant info is probably on a computer screen or the customer’s mind can be easily put at rest. The latter should always happen quickly.

Richard

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