There are three different types of meters in Australia. Knowing which one you have in your home could be the key to unlocking savings on your bill.
Basic electricity meter: The majority of residential and small businesses in Australia have their usage measured by Basic Accumulation meters that have limited functionality. This results in them having limited information to make informed decisions about their consumption habits and costs.
There are two types of Basic meters - accumulation meters that measure only the total amount consumed over a period and are manually read by a meter reader, or Time of Use (ToU) meters that record total usage within set periods. These can be aligned to a Time of Use tariff to enable you to pay lower rates for your off-peak usage.
Interval Time of Use (ToU) meter: These meters record usage every 30 minutes. This means you can have different rates for usage at different times of the day, depending on the tariff you sign up for with your retailer. Some of the benefits of interval meters include more detailed information on your electricity use and the opportunity for pricing plans that provide incentives to reduce your demand during peak times. You can make some significant savings by choosing a plan with discounts for off-peak usage.
Smart Meters, also known as Advanced Meters (AMI): Smart meters record customer usage and demand in real-time and are remotely read in 30-minute intervals. Smart Meters can be linked to in-home devices so that you can make informed decisions about your consumption.
If you live in Victoria, you should by now have a smart meter as they are compulsory across the state and the roll-out is coming to an end.
Because Smart meters record your usage throughout the day, you can benefit from off-peak rates, so make sure you choose a retailer with a suitable Time of Use (ToU) plan. Off-peak rates can be substantially lower than peak rates, so your Smart Meter will let you see when your usage is highest, so you can switch your usage habits to take advantage of the cheaper rates. This might include running your washing machine and dishwasher overnight or setting a timer on your cooling system.
If you’re not sure which type of meter you have, you can take a look at your bill or give CheapBills a call.