TOU/Smart Meter and distributors not providing "previous" and "current" readings

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TOU/Smart Meter and distributors not providing "previous" and "current" readings

(42 posts) (23 voices)

Started 2 years ago by lillypilly
Latest reply from peter69_56

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hamish05
Member

G'day, I live close by, and was connected on Feb 10. The meter was read about 2 weeks ago and as yet I haven't received my account (Red Energy). Some of my neighbors have received theirs, so I am wondering and hoping like you, there will be no issues when I do receive it. Everything else about the installation and connection was thankfully "by the book". There certainly are some horror stories here.

Good to have someone near-by with Solar, we maybe able to "swap notes" from time to time. What size PV do u have? http://www.pvoutput.org/ is good for keeping track of your production.

Could your 12kWh export actually be 1.2kWh? Sorry do disappoint!

Posted Monday 28 Mar 2011 @ 1:55:00 am from IP #
souri
Member

Interesting to read.

I had my small solar system installed April ... since then I have not even received an electricity bill. I got the smart meter already 2 months before my solar system and I got one (shocking) invoice. I keep track of all the readings in an excel spreadsheet. But I can't figure out the off peak usage (as there is nothing to read on the smart meter). I wrote my Energy company a few emails but they always tell me they need more time. I even do not know if everything is fine with my feed in tariff. Not fun as I do not know if my efforts to use the off peak period work.

Posted Thursday 17 Nov 2011 @ 4:47:12 am from IP #
hamish05
Member

I have coppied a my post from another thread which may help you souri.

"VIC Solar Power System-is it Beneficial?"

In regard to my previous post here dated 22July, I have had to take a backward step on the subject of” trust” regarding the Peak and Off Peak split on my Electricity Account.

I actually had the temerity to request a “breakdown of my consumption” for the period of my latest account. My meter only has one total consumption figure and it requires a download of stored information to be dissected for P and OP components.

Well it was forthcoming, pages and pages of numbers that were horrifying in their supposed complexity. Additional information was also presented in simpler format of “average readings for each 30 mins of a 24hr day covering the 95 day billing period.

There were also helpful graphs which clearly showed average daily consumption patterns for the entire billing period.

It was a simple matter to dissect out the Peak usage from the average readings and multiply that by the total of Peak billing days during the period. I am charged Peak rates between 7am and 11pm Mon to Fri. (no shoulder rates...yet)

If all this sounds complicated it wasn’t, it worked out exact. I guess I had every right to be suspicious, but on this occasion it was ill-founded.

Posted Wednesday 28 Sep 2011 @ 7:55:35 am from IP #

Posted Thursday 17 Nov 2011 @ 10:26:49 pm from IP #
souri
Member

Thanks hamish05,

Good to hear that you got a nice breakdown of your costs. Hope I will get my invoice soon to see the breakdown. My energy supplier contacted me that they "try" to get me an invoice "soon:. hehe.

Hehe ... maybe I should not complain and just don't receive any invoices ... :-).

Posted Wednesday 23 Nov 2011 @ 2:27:08 am from IP #
Buffled
Member

I am with Tru energy. My electric bill has 3 readings all showing 90 days with different KWH. Tru energy adds up the 3 KWH and charge me the total for 90 days billing period. Is this right? I read that Smart Meter sends KWH at 30 minutes intervals, so shouldn't the 3 (KWH) readings be added up and divide by three then multiply by 90 (days)? I rang Tru energy but the phone help was unable to give a straight answer, in the end she just said that was how Tru energy got the readings from the supplier (united Energy). Some of you have posted very intelligent answers on this forum, may be you can help me solve this puzzle.

Posted Sunday 11 Dec 2011 @ 9:26:45 am from IP #
Inspector
Member

Buffled, adding the three brackets (peak, shoulder and off-peak) then dividing by 3 would give you the average kwh consumed for each bracket for one day. If you were to multiply that value by 90 days as you stated, it would be very wrong as it would be the daily average multiplied by 90 days, and not factor the days you went away on holidays, or the other days you had the aircon running flat-out. I don't know what level of data is provided from DNSP (meter-reading company) to the retailer, but at the lowest level, the "interval" (half-hour incremental) data could be provided. However they may simply provide a total for each interval bracket (peak, shoulder, and off-peak) over the entire (91 day) billing period (as per the first few sentences in your post), which would still be sufficient data for the retailer to manipulate as they please (and charge you accordingly).

Posted Tuesday 13 Dec 2011 @ 9:05:25 am from IP #
Sonja
Member

Dear Souri
If it is the energy companie's fault for not supplying you with an invoice you only have to pay for the last 9 months!.
I had to wait three years for my first invoice and only paid for the last 9months
I now changed companies in the hope to go better service.

Posted Saturday 14 Jan 2012 @ 3:34:50 am from IP #
souri
Member

@Sonja: Hehe ... that sounds great :-). You got 2 years of free electricity. Do you have a source for the "9 months rule"?

They still haven't send me any invoice and I gave up contacting them. I just sit and wait now ... documenting my usage and feed in every month.

Posted Wednesday 1 Feb 2012 @ 3:04:13 am from IP #
peter69_56
Member

Search for Energy retail code for your state. It should show it there.

http://www.esc.vic.gov.au/NR/rdonlyres/A20C8B53-B2FF-4750-8C94-87A3FCE26202/0/RIEnergyRetailCodeversion8April201120101101.pdf

Posted Wednesday 1 Feb 2012 @ 3:23:05 am from IP #
Sonja
Member

Indeed Peter; clause 6.2

Posted Wednesday 1 Feb 2012 @ 5:18:40 am from IP #
Blinky_Bill_12
Member

All, I thought I'd post the efforts of Greg Barber at the Green's to get access to his meter data

http://mps.vic.greens.org.au/content/updated-dear-sirmadam-i-wish-access-my-smart-meter-data

Posted Wednesday 15 Feb 2012 @ 9:19:14 am from IP #
peter69_56
Member

Just got my TRU bill after solar was put on in June 2011. They waived the first 3 months (9 month rule) and I have been provided previous and current readings for peak, offpeak and generation. I have been reading everything daily and it all checks out ok.

The meter gives running total of peak, offpeak and generation and so if you read the meter on the same day they do (mine is 22 of each 3 month period) then you should have similar figures to them. As I said mine were all very close to what they had.

Down side is that they charged me (I believe) an incorrect plan and the accounting is all wrong, but they are now working on fixing it for me. As I have calculated i am about $20 in credit after 9 months I am fairly happy. SO far I have calculated the system to have saved me some $1300 in 9 months. Initial cost to me was $9,000 so happy to date.

Posted Friday 9 Mar 2012 @ 4:15:29 pm from IP #

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