On 29/02/2016 18:28, Scott M wrote:
Roger Mills wrote:
On 29/02/2016 17:15, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
Had a cold call from someone claiming to be from EDF offering me a smart
meter.

I find that reading my meters once a month and plotting the readings
in Excel tells me all I want to know.

Funnily enough, had the meter reader round this morning and asked what
her idea of the benefits of a smart meter were. Apparently they let you
see what's using the electric so that, if it's too expensive, you know
to turn it off again...

Is it me or is anyone who can't equate consumption with cost really not
cut out to live indoors?

Personally I see it as a way of sliding in multi-tier tariffs to make it
more expensive at popular times.

One day it could be how all those people with electric cars end up
paying the avoided fuel duty and VAT by have a special 'electric car
charging rate'. The meter will of course know exactly what you are using
power for.

I wonder if a 1:1 isolation transformer would act as a 'firewall' ?.

It can definately allow remote disconnection if you don't pay your bill
because my neighbour has one and it shows credit/debit information.