Proposal 10 – Getting value from smart meters

25 November 2019

Government and Ofgem to encourage EV drivers to benefit from smart metering.

Smart meters are currently being rolled out across Great Britain, and as of August 2019, about 10 million out of approximately 32 million homes have a smart electricity meter installed.  Furthermore, a number of consumers consider installing a smart meter as a low priority, causing difficulties in persuading uptake.  Without a smart meter, consumers will be unable to access innovative tariffs and delivering some grid services may not be possible. Access to these can reduce the cost of their bills, improve the service propositions and provide wider system benefits. Smart meters can also provide visibility of charging patterns and usage for network operators, allowing them to more accurately assess network headroom and necessary reinforcements. The Government should look to encourage and maximise the number of homes with both smart meters and EV chargepoints.

While the Electric Vehicle Energy Taskforce believes that smart meters are an important enabler for smart charging and the EV rollout, it is not expressing a view on the desirability or viability of undertaking smart charging through the smart metering system, as examined under the Government’s ‘Phase Two’ proposals of its smart charging consultation. 

Consideration should be given to the following points: 

• BEIS/Ofgem should establish a process which strongly encourages consumers who are going to install, or already operate, a chargepoint to have a smart meter installed;
• This process could be triggered by the installation of a chargepoint and include notifying the consumer’s energy supplier; and
• This process should ensure that consumers understand the potential benefits that a smart meter could offer to the overall cost of operating their EV.