Millions of UK households could face Uber-style “surge pricing” on their energy bills amid a major change to the way smart meters operate.
Smart meters will automatically send updates on energy usage every 30 minutes, reports The Telegraph.
The new powers, granted by energy regulator Ofgem, will begin in May sparking fears suppliers could then use the enhanced information to start charging more during peak times.
The move comes after Ofgem announced the new energy bill price cap will rise by 54% in April.
It means energy prices will rise by £693 a year for millions of households after regulator Ofgem hiked the price cap on bills to £1,971.
The increase follows a 12% rise in October.
Ofgem announces major chance to smart meters amid energy bill increase
Ofgem said the change will be implemented on all new smart meters by 2025 but those who already have a smart meter won’t be affected unless they start a new contract.
Customers can currently ‘opt-in’ to sharing data with suppliers, but Ofgem said while data will be sent by default under new plans, consumers can opt-out if they do not wish to share their data.
A spokesperson for Ofgem told The Telegraph: “This major system upgrade is a significant milestone on Britain’s path to net zero."
They added: “It will enable a more efficient, flexible and greener energy system which will save billions of pounds per year on all consumers’ energy bills.
“Ofgem will work closely with industry to make sure it delivers this major upgrade while ensuring those in vulnerable circumstances remain protected.”
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules here