Electrical

Economy 7 tarrif incorrectly charging my night useage on the day rate

Anonymous user 16/03/2024 - 2.49 PM

We've moved into a property with economy 7 and storage heaters – however, having used the heaters for the first time, we were hit with a HUGE bill from EDF. They are no help whatsoever, but upon investigation, we can see that the bill increase is reflected in the electricity usage recorded for our day rate, rather than the night as you'd think. As a test, we turned off the heaters and lo and behold the bill was lower and the electricity units used on the day rate dropped. I'm therefore certain that the heaters are being charged a day rate (even though they charge at night). Strangely though, we do still get a small nighttime reading on our bills so *something* is being recorded on the night tariff (our immersion heater perhaps). Next to our meter is a radio teleswitch which I understand is what manages the tarrif times. I've read that this service is being shut down and will need to be exchanged for a smart meter. So my suspicion is that the radio teleswitch is no longer communicating with my meter, hence our nonsensical bill (although as mentioned above, we do still get a small nighttime recording. Hmm.) I'm not holding out any hope that EDF will get to the bottom of this any time soon, so I'm wondering if anyone could shed any light on this? If I call an electrician out, would they be able to fix the tarrif error? Ultimately, I want to keep my economy 7 tarrif if it actually functions as it should. However, I categorically do not want a smart meter, but all the info online seems to suggest that this is the only option for replacing the radio teleswitch. Thanks for reading – any advice much appreciated! Edit: I've contacted my DNO (thank you for the suggestion @DMElectrical) and they were a bit surprised at the recommendation to get in touch with them. I've been advised that they only own the equipment up until the main fuse. The meter and any time-control switches belong to the supplier, so essentially it's up to EDF to send a Meter Operative to investigate. I won't hold my breath...