I really hope someone can help me.
Last July I got an electricity bill showing an enormous rise in my kwh consumption of about 900% from what it normally is (very low, roughly 500 to 700 khw per year - now almost 4,500 kwh). There is an immersion heater in the flat which is isolated and is certainly not working. There have been no changes in my usage a part from a long time away with the main power OFF (which should have reduced my bills).
I had already spoken to my provider British Gas last January, when after a period of one month away from the flat, and having switched off the main power completely at the consumer unit, I saw a first rise in my projected usage rather than the expected decrease.
I asked them to check the meter, but I was discouraged by the fact that I was told that 'checking the meter might cost up to £1,000 or more' if the fault was not there.
So I left things as they were, used electricity wisely and then the real massive rise came last month. When I contacted BG again, I was told the same thing - checking a meter that is not faulty may cost £1,000 or more.
So I contacted a charitable organisation and with their help I started doing my own testing: using a British Gas monitor consistently showed a daily consumption of a third compared to the meter.
On top of this, I documented that turning off the main switch in my flat did NOT stop the meter from moving forward.
With the mains off the meter keeps on running at a rate of 5 kwh per day and the red light keeps on blinking; it did so even after nine days with the power totally off and I have videos showing exactly that.
I have also done some research and I found out that my meter - a single rate Ampy metering 5235A dated 2007 - is not only old, but also comes from a very unfortunate batch, having given lots of problems to other customers in the past.
Each and every single time I have contacted the provider a new complaint case number has been generated, the case has been restarted and I have not received any answer to my queries yet. You can imagine how frustrating this has been.
Can someone kindly confirm if:
1) My Ampy metering 5235A dated 2007 is indeed obsolte, meaning it is over its certification time? And does it have, like I suspect, a very bad failure rate compared to others?
2) Considered the meter keeps on running even with the mains off and regularly shows readings 3 times as high as the BG monitor, is it reasonable to expect the problem is indeed with the meter?
3) Could it be a problem with the consumer unit instead, sending wrong signals to the meter, and should I call an electrician to verify that before I call the provider to finally come and check the meter?
4) If so, what test should I ask the electrician to perform and can the result be easily reported as a definitive proof that the meter is not working properly?
Many thanks in advance,
Lonni NW6
Last July I got an electricity bill showing an enormous rise in my kwh consumption of about 900% from what it normally is (very low, roughly 500 to 700 khw per year - now almost 4,500 kwh). There is an immersion heater in the flat which is isolated and is certainly not working. There have been no changes in my usage a part from a long time away with the main power OFF (which should have reduced my bills).
I had already spoken to my provider British Gas last January, when after a period of one month away from the flat, and having switched off the main power completely at the consumer unit, I saw a first rise in my projected usage rather than the expected decrease.
I asked them to check the meter, but I was discouraged by the fact that I was told that 'checking the meter might cost up to £1,000 or more' if the fault was not there.
So I left things as they were, used electricity wisely and then the real massive rise came last month. When I contacted BG again, I was told the same thing - checking a meter that is not faulty may cost £1,000 or more.
So I contacted a charitable organisation and with their help I started doing my own testing: using a British Gas monitor consistently showed a daily consumption of a third compared to the meter.
On top of this, I documented that turning off the main switch in my flat did NOT stop the meter from moving forward.
With the mains off the meter keeps on running at a rate of 5 kwh per day and the red light keeps on blinking; it did so even after nine days with the power totally off and I have videos showing exactly that.
I have also done some research and I found out that my meter - a single rate Ampy metering 5235A dated 2007 - is not only old, but also comes from a very unfortunate batch, having given lots of problems to other customers in the past.
Each and every single time I have contacted the provider a new complaint case number has been generated, the case has been restarted and I have not received any answer to my queries yet. You can imagine how frustrating this has been.
Can someone kindly confirm if:
1) My Ampy metering 5235A dated 2007 is indeed obsolte, meaning it is over its certification time? And does it have, like I suspect, a very bad failure rate compared to others?
2) Considered the meter keeps on running even with the mains off and regularly shows readings 3 times as high as the BG monitor, is it reasonable to expect the problem is indeed with the meter?
3) Could it be a problem with the consumer unit instead, sending wrong signals to the meter, and should I call an electrician to verify that before I call the provider to finally come and check the meter?
4) If so, what test should I ask the electrician to perform and can the result be easily reported as a definitive proof that the meter is not working properly?
Many thanks in advance,
Lonni NW6
