Monday December 16th 2024
Colin Beattie MSP, Midlothian North & Musselburgh, writes his monthly column for Midlothian View
With the freezing temperatures we have experienced lately, I’m sure we don’t need reminded that we are officially into winter. However, summer is only 6 months away and I recently attended a seminar which explained about Radio Teleswitch (RTS) meters and the service which is due to be switched off in June.
The RTS system, which uses long wave radio signals to tell some electricity meters to switch between on and off-peak, is a legacy technology and no longer viable. Without a meter upgrade some affected homes, schools and businesses could be left without heating and hot water, or unable to turn off their heating. Ofgem has been working with suppliers and consumer groups in tackling the challenges of migrating households which have an RTS meter before the service ends on 30 June 2025.
Ofgem are keen to stress the importance of getting your RTS meter replaced and have called for suppliers and stakeholders to come together and combine resources to try and reach as many households as possible before the service is switched off.
Energy suppliers have been contacting customers since 2023 about the issue. I understand that some of my constituents may be cautious about acting on communications received from energy suppliers however this issue is real and the industry has asked for help in getting consumers to contact their suppliers to arrange for an upgrade before the switch off. If you haven’t already been contacted, I urge all of you who may be impacted to contact your supplier now for advice on how to get an upgrade.
Even if you live in privately rented accommodation and have an RTS meter, your supplier is obliged to replace this. From January there will be large scale public awareness on consumer engagement via tv and radio to alert energy consumers to this serious issue and to encourage them to contact their supplier to find out if their meter requires upgrading. The industry has also signed up to the RTS Call To Action which is a collective commitment to rapidly increase the pace and number of RTS upgrades and to prioritise known vulnerable consumers. This will also ensure customers have working heating and hot water after 30 June 2025 and inform them of the risks of rejecting an upgraded service.
If you have, or think you may have an RTS meter, please get in touch with your supplier now.
This is an example of an RTS electricity meter with a radio teleswitch in a black box to the right of the meter.
If you’re not sure whether you have an RTS meter, there are a few things you can look out for:
– there may be a separate switch box near your meter with a radio teleswitch label on it
– your property is heated using electricity or storage heaters
– there is no gas supply to your area. This includes households in rural areas and high-rise flats
you get cheaper energy at different times of day. Your tariff might be: Economy 7, Economy 10 or Total Heat Total Control
If you’re unsure if you have RTS equipment, contact your electricity supplier who will be able to confirm for you.
These two articles also provide more information,
Energy UK: The Radio Teleswitch Service switch-off: What you need to know
Citizens Advice: If you have a radio teleswitch or dynamically teleswitched energy meter
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