Neglected meter readings and smart meter issues: The complaints made to Ireland's energy regulator
Electricity account problems, government credit queries and billing issues drove the largest volume of contacts. Picture: iStock
The Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU) has just published its 2024 Customer Care Annual Report. The utilities watchdog reports that the number of complaints from energy and water customers actually fell by 22% in 2024 compared to 2023.
They’re not sure why, but speculate that this is simply contact levels returning to pre-Covid levels. The spike in energy prices at that time prompted a wave of consumer anxiety that sometimes resulted in calls to the regulator.
Despite the fall, there were still nearly 24,500 contacts from customers throughout last year. The vast majority of these related to energy rather than water.
Electricity account problems, government credit queries and billing issues drove the largest volume of contacts. Energy complaints included billing, smart metering, microgeneration, allocating government electricity credits and switching. Water complaints related to leaks, connections and flow/pressure issues.
The CRU says that it’s aware of the impact energy prices have had on households and businesses, particularly those that may already be struggling to pay their bills. Over the last several years, the CRU says that they have ‘put protections in place for energy customers and for those who qualify as vulnerable customers’.
In the press release accompanying the report, the regulator said, ‘The CRU continues to encourage customers that are having difficulty paying their bills to engage with their supplier. Suppliers are required to work out a manageable payment plan with customers who are experiencing difficulties. It is also important that customers ensure they are on the best tariff for their needs and those who switch or renegotiate with their current supplier can still find the most savings available in the marketplace.’
The share of customer contacts for each of the seven largest suppliers was broadly in line with their market share, with only Electric Ireland, SSE Airtricity and Pinergy having slightly higher shares of customer contacts than their market share. In relation to network operators, contacts relating to ESB Networks and Gas Networks Ireland were slightly lower in 2024 than in 2023.
While the CRU acknowledges that providers have been experiencing increased numbers of contacts and complaints, it is important that providers investigate customer complaints fully and that they try to resolve issues promptly before complaints are escalated to the CRU.
As far as water is concerned, t he CRU received 382 customer contacts in relation to Uisce Éireann in 2024, a similar level to 2022. Most contacts received related to incorrect bills, arrears, high bills, refunds and leaks.
Karen Trant is CRU director of customer policy and protection. She advises all customers to remain informed when it comes to their rights and to be aware of the recent price reductions suppliers have available to ensure they are on the best tariff for their needs.
It’s also worth pointing out that the CRU provides a free dispute resolution service to all customers who have an unresolved complaint against an energy supplier, network operator or with Uisce Éireann. The CRU also provides customer information and independent advice about energy or water services, consumer rights and supplier obligations.
If you have a problem with your energy supplier, your first call isn’t to the CRU, it’s to the supplier. Under the legislation, the CRU can only investigate a complaint after it’s been through the operator’s internal complaints process.
The CRU says that each complex complaint is investigated in line with their published process. The investigation gathers information, correspondence and communication between the parties involved in the complaint. This can include a review of call recordings, bills, letters, emails, photographs, meter reads and any other relevant information.
In one case detailed in the report, a customer had been submitting gas meter reads to their natural gas supplier, but these were rejected by Gas Networks Ireland (GNI) with no explanation. The customer then received a very high catch-up bill in 2024.
It turned out that due to an administrative oversight, the customer was getting estimated bills for nearly seven years. The CRU’s investigation identified serious failings by both GNI (Gas Networks Ireland) and the natural gas supplier and the complaint was upheld. The customer was awarded 20 charter payments against GNI and 19 for the supplier, totalling €1,265. The supplier was also direct to re-bill the customer using rates in place at the time of usage.
In another case, a customer had a smart meter installed in January 2023 and was on a smart tariff. In April 2024 their supplier got in touch to let them know that their smart meter connectivity had dropped to the point where readings could no longer be remotely received. The supplier advised they were not getting enough meter reads to support the current tariff and discussed other tariff options with the customer.
The customer contacted the network operator to query why the connectivity had reduced. The network operator logged a ‘closed complaint’ for the customer – meaning there was no investigation before the customer was referred to the CRU – and advised the meter would be read manually.
In this case, the CRU investigation found that the supplier acted correctly in this case, by notifying the customer when connectivity dropped to discuss a more suitable tariff. So the CRU did not uphold the complaint against the network operator, because smart meter connectivity is outside their control.
However, they also concluded that the supplier did not investigate the customer’s complaint properly and awarded two charter payments (€70) for this lack of investigation before the customer was referred to the CRU.
Another customer complained that their electricity usage – and so their bills – were high in relation to the size of their property. They said their electrician had confirmed that there were no faulty appliances in the premises that might lead to excess electricity usage. As a result, the customer believed there might be a fault with the meter readings used to calculate their charges.
The customer had switched suppliers several times over the period, and the meter of record at the premises had also been replaced twice.
The CRU reviewed the meter readings and found that while usage was high for the property size, average usage had remained relatively consistent across the whole period. There was no evidence that there were any issues with the meter readings used for the customer’s billing and the complaint was not upheld.
Interesting to note that in this case, the same customer had raised a complaint about their original supplier’s customer service, and this complaint was settled following payment of €1,200 for customer care failures.
The CRU advises that if you are concerned about high meter readings, contact your supplier as quickly as you can. They may be able to support you in an assessment of your usage. If you suspect a meter fault, your supplier can request this for you, however you will be asked to agree to pay a fee for this test if no fault is found.
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