4 days ago
Smart meters are a symbol of energy companies' contempt for customers
SIR – Christopher Howse ('The creeping tyranny of smart meters is a national disgrace', Comment, July 11) is not alone in having been let down by EDF.
I too fell for its threats, although in my case the meter was at least fitted at the arranged time.
Unfortunately, here in rural Wales, the signal is not reliable. I told EDF that my device was not working, to which it merely replied that this was a known fault – leaving me no better off than I was before I had it. I now have to take readings myself and submit them online each month.
Kevin Cottrell
Grosmont, Monmouthshire
SIR – I can sympathise with Christopher Howse. I live in a first-floor flat with the electricity meters on the ground floor, and I too was browbeaten by EDF into having a smart meter installed.
When the job was done, I asked for the meter display so that I could keep an eye on my use. I was told it would be sent to me.
Several weeks passed, so I called EDF's customer service line and asked where my display was. I was told that, as my meter is on the ground floor and my flat is on the first floor, it would not work.
Ian Carter
Lytham St Annes, Lancashire
SIR – I succumbed to EDF's badgering and agreed to have smart meters installed in the three blocks of flats that I manage.
A date was set – but nobody came. No explanation, no apology.
Joseph B Fox
Redhill, Surrey
SIR – In your article (''Not clear if heat pumps will save people money', government adviser admits', July 10), a spokesman for the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero says: 'The British people are showing record demand for heat pumps, which enable families to save around £100 a year by using a smart tariff.'
The same article suggests that a heat pump can cost £13,000 to install. My maths may be rusty, but this equates to a pay-back time of 130 years.
If the heat pump is anything like my fridge, though, it will only last 10 years before it needs replacing.
Dr Andrew Slater
Sedlescombe, East Sussex
SIR – Heat pumps are at their most efficient in hot weather and their least efficient in cold weather.
When are our homes more likely to require heating?
Frank Smith
Chalfont St Giles, Buckinghamshire
