Martin Lewis highlights in his open letter to Energy Secretary Ed Miliband that the rollout of smart meters has been poorly managed, leading to malfunctioning devices and inaccurate billing. He argues that while smart meters have potential benefits for energy efficiency, consumer dissatisfaction is prevalent due to a failure rate that he estimates at 19%, significantly higher than the government's official figure of 10%. Lewis advocates for prioritizing the repair of existing faulty meters over the installation of new ones.
Lewis disputes the government's claims about the performance of smart meters, stating, 'Last year Homebuilding & Renovating reported that a 10th of smart meters are faulty, according to Government figures, but I claim this figure is half the actual number.' He further explains, 'The real figure is 19% according to a Money Saving Expert poll,' emphasizing that the government's statistics only consider meters in 'dumb' mode, thus failing to account for numerous consumer-reported issues.
Lewis mentions, 'I am regularly contacted by people who ask, What’s the best tariff I can get without having to fit a smart meter?' illustrating a significant consumer backlash against smart meters. Many consumers reportedly prefer higher costs to avoid the issues associated with smart meters, signaling a need for urgent government attention to restore trust and effectiveness in the smart meter system.
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