Help with Power Companies

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Rodders1nz

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#288182 11-Jun-2021 17:35

Currently looking to change power company’s due to Genesis not being able to read our smart meter. The meter reader comes during the day and we are not home, not keen to leave a key with them either. Nobody at genesis seems to be able to give me a reason/how to fix that so the meter can be read remotely

We are in Cromwell, Central Otago on a low user rate, gas hot water and main methods of heating is woodfire and a ducted heat pump split is about 50/50 for heating

Looks like most base rates are the same for most companies. but the discounts are where they vary wildly

My questions are is it just Genesis that can’t read our smart meter our will it be all power companies

Second is what discounts are out there? we currently get 26% (eBill /Direct Debit/Special /Fixed Term /Dual Fuel Discount Elec 5%)

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meow
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#2727447 11-Jun-2021 17:37

All power companies so you'll need to find one who does manual reading.

Have you had anyone out to investigate the reason why?

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SomeoneSomewhere

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#2727449 11-Jun-2021 17:44

Does the meter give you a signal value (SIG) and what is it?

Do you have OK vodafone coverage?

Rodders1nz

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#2727451 11-Jun-2021 17:45

We want a company to do remote reads and not need to come out to do a manual reading, asked multiple time just to be told that they can’t read my meter and don’t give me a reason

Rodders1nz

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#2727456 11-Jun-2021 17:50

SomeoneSomewhere:

Does the meter give you a signal value (SIG) and what is it?

Do you have OK vodafone coverage?

Sould be in Vodafone coverage but meter is in garage in steel cabinet. is there away to check signal on the meter?

SomeoneSomewhere

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#2727458 11-Jun-2021 17:54

Rodders1nz:

SomeoneSomewhere:

Does the meter give you a signal value (SIG) and what is it?

Do you have OK vodafone coverage?

Sould be in Vodafone coverage but meter is in garage in steel cabinet. is there away to check signal on the meter?

It should cycle through a series of values on the display; you can also press 'select' to move to the next option. Holding select might get you into more values.

Does the steel box have a window or is it solid?

Do you have a model? Some of the later non-smart meters look smart-ish.

SomeoneSomewhere

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#2727460 11-Jun-2021 17:55

You can also often just read the meter yourself and enter it into a portal somewhere, and they bill you based on that. They'll still want a manual reading occasionally but that can be once or twice a year.

Rodders1nz

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#2727462 11-Jun-2021 17:59

Solid steel box and the meter is an intellihub

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Rodders1nz

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#2727463 11-Jun-2021 18:04

SomeoneSomewhere:

You can also often just read the meter yourself and enter it into a portal somewhere, and they bill you based on that. They'll still want a manual reading occasionally but that can be once or twice a year.

Yep ive been putting manual readings into there app but they still want to do a physical reading every 2 months

PolicyGuy

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#2727468 11-Jun-2021 18:09

Is it a Trustpower meter? I have the exact same problem.
From an online chat on 12th November last year: "Sorry about this XXXX, I have had a look and as your smart meter is an intellihub meter, we do not have the contract to read these remotely."

As far as I know, the problem is commercial, not technical.
Genesis have not been willing / able to come to an arrangement with Trustpower (who are owned by Infratil) where Trustpower will read the meter remotely and transfer the data to Genesis.

What I did was take pictures of the meter showing the 'meter readings' and email these pictures to Genesis. They accepted that a couple of times, but eventually insist the meter reader must see the actual meter

Later on I got them to tell me when the meter reader would be calling.
If I'm going to be out, I take the pictures, print them out, stick the piece of paper in an envelope "For the meter reader" and stick that to the front door. Genesis presumably don't know the meter reader didn't see the actual meter and are happy to accept the reading.

Yes, it's a sh!t shambles.
Blame Max Bradford

Rodders1nz

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#2727472 11-Jun-2021 18:17

PolicyGuy:

Is it a Trustpower meter? I have the exact same problem.
From an online chat on 12th November last year: "Sorry about this XXXX, I have had a look and as your smart meter is an intellihub meter, we do not have the contract to read these remotely."

As far as I know, the problem is commercial, not technical.
Genesis have not been willing / able to come to an arrangement with Trustpower (who are owned by Infratil) where Trustpower will read the meter remotely and transfer the data to Genesis.

What I did was take pictures of the meter showing the 'meter readings' and email these pictures to Genesis. They accepted that a couple of times, but eventually insist the meter reader must see the actual meter

Later on I got them to tell me when the meter reader would be calling.
If I'm going to be out, I take the pictures, print them out, stick the piece of paper in an envelope "For the meter reader" and stick that to the front door. Genesis presumably don't know the meter reader didn't see the actual meter and are happy to accept the reading.

Yes, it's a sh!t shambles.
Blame Max Bradford

Yes it is a trustpower meter. sounds like a good idea with the photos might have to resort to this.

In 2021 how is it cheaper to pay someone to manually come out do a reading and not come to a two way agreement with trustpower?

PolicyGuy

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#2727474 11-Jun-2021 18:29

Rodders1nz:

Yes it is a trustpower meter. sounds like a good idea with the photos might have to resort to this.

In 2021 how is it cheaper to pay someone to manually come out do a reading and not come to a two way agreement with trustpower?

Yes, it's completely mad.

The metering should never have been allowed to go to the retailers, it should either have stayed with the lines companies or be put into separate "meter services" companies.
Just one of the most egregious of the mistakes in Max Bradford's electricity industry "reforms"

I used to work for what became a Lines company, and when we read our own meters it cost us between $5 and $10 per annum to read a meter on a two-monthly cycle.
That's full cost: salaries, super, vehicles - capital and operating, hand-held devices, the lot, and we had a large proportion of rural meters too.

A soon as the meter-ownership became diverse, the reading costs went up very sharply, as different meter readers would read different meters in the same street on different dates for different retailers.

After all these years I still get a bit angry at the sheer ideologically-inspired stupidity of it all.

jfanning

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#2727476 11-Jun-2021 18:37

PolicyGuy:

Yes, it's a sh!t shambles.
Blame Max Bradford

Correct me if I am wrong, the reforms were in 1997? 24 years ago? So we are meant to blame someone that was one part of a change (remembering you can't change the law by yourself) that happened 24 years ago and not the proceeding governments/MPs after that?

nickb800

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#2727477 11-Jun-2021 18:41

Have you tried asking Genesis to install a new meter, and who the supplier would be? It sounds like trust power isn't their preferred supplier - if you ask (and pay $160 odd fee) then they might get you a Vector meter with a proper external antenna

Rodders1nz

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#2727478 11-Jun-2021 18:45

nickb800: Have you tried asking Genesis to install a new meter, and who the supplier would be? It sounds like trust power isn't their preferred supplier - if you ask (and pay $160 odd fee) then they might get you a Vector meter with a proper external antenna

Yep have asked them to install there own meter and offered to pay for it as well but was still told no

SomeoneSomewhere

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#2727479 11-Jun-2021 19:01

Ah, I'm not familiar with the L&G meters. Everything around Wellington is EDMI including Trustpower.

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