The pay as you go electric key meter (Actaris ACE900 kbp) is not working correctly, not giving any info in screen, back light is working, button does bugger all (can’t see how much etc) but Electric (day rate) is still working. (night rate that does hot water and storage heaters, seem to have stop working/supplying power at night, but need to double check fuses just in case)

So I rang the supplier (Spark elec – set up by past tenant) so after a bit of getting pushed about from one person to another.

I finally get told a Elec engineer can’t do anything TILL MY POWER goes out!!
as it might hurt them!

Is this right?

Surely they can pull the fuse/turn off the incoming power, pretty sure the meter/box doesn’t hold any/a lot of power, just seems a lot of crap, more so it could be days or even weeks before that might happen, where I have no heating or hot water.

When I explained this, they couldn’t care less, just keep saying call back when power goes out!!
And you can bet that be in the evening when in the middle of cooking dinner!

So is it true, a electrician can’t work on a pay as you go box, if “power” is going to it?

Thanks

Have you started a complaint process about the way your supplier is dealing with this?

Get one on the go asap. Provides a financial incentive for them to pull the finger out.

As to working on the meter, I am not an electrician, but the power grid (western, in our case) people turned up to fix a downed pole by our house with live electric still on the wires, and they had us reconnected again within a few hours.

If you need the meter replacing they should just be able to pull the fuses.

Is that one of the meters that are actually owned by the landlord, not the supplier?

Is there a “normal” meter in the house as well?

If so, it’s the landlord you need to speak to.

The system will still be live even after the meter runs out. Anyway sparks will happily pull the fuse to work on a system (even when they shouldn’t, although in this case they can).

Thanks everyone.
That’s what I thought, the reason is BS, I even ask if that was the case, how can they work on a normal meter with constant power, which they did not answer and just said I have to call back when power goes out! lol

The only thought I do have is maybe they making sure I am “Zero” credit so they don’t have to put anything back on, as I just topped up the key.
The other thing I thought of, Am I getting free power if their is no record of it on the screen. and they can’t keep track? (I did ask if they can me how much I had-they could not!)

If you need the meter replacing they should just be able to pull the fuses.

That’s what I do when I want to work on my distribution board….

Pull the 100A fuse out, move things about, stick it back in and put a new seal on it..

[url=https://flic.kr/p/q2YDVN]100A Supply Fuse[/url] by Ben Freeman, on Flickr

Which is naughty footplaps as I’m sure you know, but I fully advocate such tinkering 😉

Typically, the cut out is owned by the Distribution System Operator. The meter is typically owned by the meter operator. Normally the meter operator will be assessed by the DSO and authorised to pull the cut out fuse.

It may get tricky if it’s an independent distribution system operator or a meter operator who doesn’t really do much in that area.

Depending on the cable and cut out types, there can be some risk associated with pulling the cut out fuse which is why it’s best left to someone authorised.

The meter does have Scottish and southern elec on it, so I rang them and they said the elec supplier got transferred to Spark and they are responsible for the meter now. (which Spark did not deny)

And Just to be clear it is something I do NOT want to do myself, I am trying to get them (Spark) to fix.
And the reason they giving me for not coming out to fix it is I still have power and it can’t be changed till I run out of “credit” and the power goes off.
Witch I was thinking is a load a bull S, so I thought I double check if this is the case
before I kick up a fuss.

“It may get tricky if it’s an independent distribution system operator or a meter operator who doesn’t really do much in that area” I think that prob more of the case.

The key prepayment meter in my rental has not been working for 6 months. According to scottish power the electricity will NOT go off – but they do have a record of consumption at their end and there will be bills issued eventually once the faulty meter is replaced

they do have a record of consumption at their end

That has to be some kind of historical consumption estimate – they can’t meter your individual usage from their end. Could be miles out depending on the tenants you’ve had, or empty periods since it’s been broken, (I seem to remember you’ve had a change of renter).

Surprised you’ve let that one go for 6 months TJ!

Edit – did you get the window bloke sorted? Not been an update on that for a few weeks.

Maybe it will loose the credits stored if the power is cut off for a few hours. Then they don’t want the agro of having to sort credits and trying to find our if it was 1 pound or 100 pounds. If its at zero then there is no quibble. What would happen in a power cut who knows, I would have thought that it would have to go backed up by a secondary battery but things built to a price sometimes things are not logical

They are going to do a meter change – nobody repairs meters in the field.

So if the credits are held on the meter (I don’t do meters really so I don’t know) then sorting the problem will lose your credits.

Now I’m sure they can sort that, but it’s probably easier if you have no credit left and they give you a meter with no credit on it.

Other than that, there may be other issues or a junior body in their organisation might be informing you on something they don’t actually understand themselves.