Smart meters aren’t so clever

Smart meters were meant to make our lives easier. They were designed to help us reduce energy consumption and cut bills. Over the last five years, the government has been pushing energy firms to install these meters as quickly as possible. Millions of homes have been fitted with one. The flashing screen monitoring how much power is being used has become a ubiquitous feature in households across Britain. We’re constantly nudged to switch off a couple of lights, or skip a load in the washing machine, as we see what this energy use is costing us. But there’s a big problem with smart meters: millions of them don’t work properly.

Nearly four million smart meters in the UK are malfunctioning, according to figures released by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) earlier this year. But while that number is shocking, the true tally of dodgy smart meters could be even higher.