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When smart meters aren't so clever

22 February 2010

Here's a cautionary tale from across the pond. The Pacific Gas and Electric Company is facing a class action suit because its rollout of smart meters in Bakersfield, California, has gone a tad pear-shaped.
Consumers are livid because their bills have risen. The energy company did not provide display units and punters didn't realise that they should have been switching tariffs to take advantage of cheaper rates.
There seems to be a major data problem. Which the US$2.2 billion initiative isn't dealing with very well. It appears that most of the useful data isn't getting through to customers and is instead parked somewhere in cyberspace while the company works out how to communicate with its customers.
Oops. Or maybe it should be a Homer Simpson-like "d'oh"!

Tags: electricity retail, smart meters

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