Skip To Content

Your browser is out of date, please upgrade it.

 
Back to list

Smart meters are becoming the new must-have for smart consumers

  • More than eight in ten (84%) of smart meter customers recommend them
  • Nearly four in five (79%) of smart meter customers believe that their bills are accurate
  • Only 59 per cent of consumers with traditional meters believe their bills to be accurate

Smart Energy GB, the national campaign for the smart meter rollout, today publishes the second Smart energy outlook, the largest independent barometer of national public opinion on energy and smart meters. The report finds high levels of satisfaction, control and energy-savvy amongst those who have already upgraded to their smart meter. Every household and microbusiness in Great Britain will have the chance to upgrade to a smart meter at no additional cost as part of the national digitisation of the retail energy industry taking place between now and 2020. Smart meters will bring an end to estimated bills and show people what they’re spending in pounds and pence via a handheld display.

September 2015's Smart energy outlook, carried out by Populus on behalf of Smart Energy GB showed:

  • More than eight in ten (84%) of consumers with a smart meter would recommend them to a friend, neighbour or relative
  • Nearly four in five (79%) of consumers with a smart meter believe that their energy bills are accurate, whereas only 59 per cent of those without feel the same
  • Three quarters of respondents (75%) with a smart meter understand their energy bills compared with 56 per cent of those with traditional meters
  • Nearly eight in ten (79%) of consumers with a smart meter have taken steps to try and use less energy such as turning off lights, turning their heating down or changing the way household appliances are used
  • Nearly seven in ten (69%) of respondents with a smart meter said that they felt more conscious about the energy they use at home

Commenting on the findings, Sacha Deshmukh, Chief Executive of Smart Energy GB said: “This digitisation of Britain’s last analogue industry is vital, and will transform the experiences all of us have when buying our gas and electricity. It’s great to see such a huge percentage of smart meter customers, 84 per cent, so enthusiastic about the experience that they would recommend one to their friends. And many, many more report feeling more empowered and taking control over what they’re using around the home. “We’re at the start of our national energy upgrade, but already those who have their smart meters are experiencing a transformation. Smart Energy GB will carry on spreading the word to make sure that everyone in Great Britain, from Perth to Portsmouth, has the chance to get their smart meter and reap the full benefits".

-ENDS-

Notes to editors

10,101 interviews were achieved between 18 May 2015 and 1 June 2015.

The full Smart energy outlook report can be viewed or downloaded here.

About Smart Energy GB

Smart Energy GB is the not-for-profit campaign for the national smart meter rollout. It’s our task to help everyone in Great Britain understand smart meters, the national rollout and how to use their new meters to get their gas and electricity under control. Our national campaign has already begun and will reach all households and microbusinesses in England, Scotland and Wales. Find out more about Smart Energy GB.

About smart meters and the rollout

Smart meters will replace the traditional meters we currently have in our homes. They will provide consumers with accurate bills, near real time information on energy usage in pounds and pence, and greater control over their gas and electricity. The smart meter rollout is an essential technology upgrade, unprecedented in its scale, to improve Great Britain’s energy infrastructure. Between now and 2020, everyone across England, Scotland and Wales will be offered a smart meter by their energy supplier at no extra cost. More than 1.6 million smart meters have already been installed in homes and microbusinesses. Find out how you can get a smart meter from your energy supplier. 

Smart Energy GB media contacts

For more information including interview requests, case studies of smart meter customers, infographics, photography and video content please contact the Smart Energy GB media team:

Lucy Maggs: [email protected]; 0203 751 0744

Stephen Shawcross: [email protected]; 0203 751 0768