I still like Watters approach.

this is also easily documented, and provides PROOF that the meter is over-reading (if this is the case) and if NPower do not respond immediately to this then it is Which?, Watchdog, and every consumer organisation under the sun.

SimonH. Its a small 'whirlpool' chest freezer about the size of a washing machine. I'm actually quite proud to say that I use 'best practise' with this appliance (as opposed to all the other lacadasical housework I do). Kept full to the brim with BOGOFF's then we eat them all and I make sure its empty of ice before it gets full up again - trying to cut down on food wastage by using the freezer and it seems to be working. I throw out less food, but due to the massive hike in prices, we still spend as much as we did before.

We also keep it in the unused/unheated front room rather than the garage - on the vague offchance that the heat from the coils at the back will assist the temp in the room. . . . . . and because we lost power to the garage long ago. . . . .

Sparky just phoned as I was writing this. He's starting the rewiring of the ground floor next tuesday. . . . . .

Ludite - just a thought - what companies REALLY don't like is negative publicity. If you get to the point where your head is starting to hurt from hitting it against the proverbial brick wall (or preferably before you get to that point) write to the MD of the utility company (cc'd to your MP, local Councillor etc) threatening to send all the details to the press, TV and radio (any consumer programmes on your local TV/radio).

TheDoctor. I think I'm already half way there. I look a lot like nurse ratchet when I'm angry, I have a white coat and I'm developing an annoying facial tick.

I'm almost starting to feel sorry for whoever turns up

helen. this is what i dearly hope for too.

TheDoctor, that was really funny, thank you!

Ludite, I think you're coping brilliantly with a very difficult problem. What Cwatters suggests would give you useful ammunition against npower if the meter is faulty. We used to have two sets of meters as part of the house was a self contained flat. We got two sets of bills (from the dreadful EDF) paid by direct debit. One day, without us noticing, EDf simply stopped sending out one set of bills - although the meter kept getting read. This continued for......five years! After five years (all this time we still received and paid for one set of bills and I have to say we didn't miss that second electricity bill) they sent us a bill for over £1,600! EDF said a "computer fault" meant a bill hadn't been generated for five years and there wasn't anything we could do because we had actually used the power - we just hadn't been billed for it. EDF made us set up a £30 a month standing order to pay it off or they were going to cut us off even though it was their mistake. When we started work on the house we got rid of one set of meters and at the same time switched to Good Energy. So then we were paying a bill for Good Energy power, plus £30 per month to EDF to pay off the £1,600 debt. After six months or so I noticed that, while the debt was going down by £30 per month, it was also increasing even though the meters that it related to had been physically removed! I then received a bill from EDF for power used (through non existant meters...). At which point I lost patience with them (having spent hours on the 'phone to their call centres) and, cancelling the direct debit, inviting them to write to me to explain. I have heard nothing since.

I thoroughly reccommend Good Energy - they aren't the cheapest but all their power is from renewables and the people who answer the 'phone are very helpful.

Good luck Ludite!

Hello TheDoctor, interesting question - unlikely scenario. Good Energy is a profit making business and they presumably have a business plan that allows for investment in new renewables generation capacity as their business grows. It would be interesting to ask them the question. Their prices do differ in different regions which I believe is due to the renewables capacity in each region so I guess the answer is that demand would be controlled by price. Hopefully as more micro generation gets going they will be buying it up.

Cwatters. Thanks for your advice. As I've said earlier in the thread, this is almost what I had been doing. I knew exactly what appliances were using electricity and their use was not adding up to what the meter read.

I have examined the bills in detail. I'm reasonably clear with which meter under the cupboard supplies which set of appliances. I heard on the news recently that the 'average household' spends £1,000 a YEAR on gas AND electric. . . . .that factor alone is enough for me to insist that they do some sort of test.

I have to say CWatters, that at no point have npower said they will charge me for testing the meter with a calibrated load, but they have hinted that if the meter IS tested with a calibrated load and it is discovered that the meter is UNDERCHARGING then they will be after me for the difference. . . . . . .

Of course, in order to be after me for the difference, they will HAVE to do the test. . . . . . . . . I am starting to think that their 'test' is a little like the 'so called' TV licence vans who were supposed to be able to tell if you hadn't got a licence. . . . . . scaremongering and completely fake.

Posted By: luditeCwatters. Thanks for your advice. As I've said earlier in the thread, this is almost what I had been doing. I knew exactly what appliances were using electricity and their use was not adding up to what the meter read.

Sorry to labour the point but that's not quite the same. It doesn't rule out a hidden load or someone stealing electricity by tapping off somewhere in the house. If you measure consumption for a few hours then repeat that with a known load you can elminate the possibility of a hiden load and be certain the fault is in the meter. This works even if you can't turn everything off and get the meter to stop.

Well ok It doesn't totally rule out a hidden load that switches itself on an off but the longer you run the test the less likely that is to effect the results.

Oooo exciting

How is your freezer stuff?

Katymac. Fortunately I was able to take all the stuff out of our fridge/freezer freezer part and pack it into the little chest freezer in the living room as the electrics there weren't affected. Any spare ice packs we had I put in one fridge and banned anyone from openeing the door. We left the raw chicken in the other fridge, where it sat and kept itself warm in it's plastic wrapper until we ate it last night (happy to report we've had no ill effects!!) The sparky came round yesterday and flicked the fuse switch under the cupboard and it all came back on again. He checked the kettle socket - which still works, but the kettle didn't.

I changed the fuse on the kettle, plugged it in and the kettle fused the whole lot again and stopped working. Returned the kettle to currys this morning and got a cheaper one on the warranty - seems to be working fine.

Unfortunately, no one thought to mop out the freezer while it was off and so it's solid ice in the bottom - need to do that asap.

Albert. I have seen Little voice. . . .it was filmed in the town where I live. . . . . I seem to remember there was a fire at the end. . . . . . I'm hanging on in there, as we only have a couple of days to go. . . . . . . what irritated me though was grandma asked me on Sunday what I was doing about sorting the whole situation out. . . . . . . You guys know I've been harping on about this ever since we got the bill - and I've been worried about it for months before that!

I was counting down the days too. Now only hours / minutes to go. Best of luck.

10:25. No show as yet. If he doesn't turn up in 13 minutes I will officially start to miss the kids end of term play (their sports day has already been rained off). Grandma has also had to cancel her voluntary work with the stroke club. We are both waiting. . .

It's 20 past 1. I decided to go and see the kids as 'caterpillar' and 'butterfly'. They spectacularly underperformed but were VERY cute.

Got back at 11:26 and was relieved to find he hadn't turned up.

12:06 FINALLY. A very innocuous/ harmless/ appologetic bloke arrived from 'meter plus'. To cut a long story short, he tested all 5 meters, but said he wasn't qualified to remove the one which read 00000. He can only do specific jobs that he gets in writing.

All he would say was that while the other 4 meters seemed to be ok. he had recorded a 'slight discrepancy' with the meter in question.

Short of holding him down and beating it out of him (5 on to 1 would have been unfair even when 2 are pensioners are 2 are under 5years old) all he would commit to was that the meter was 2.04 - 2.09. . . . . . . but he wouldn't say what, how, why. . . . . .

I asked him what the usual figure was. . . . . . . again the mumbling and skirting the issue (we must make a formidable sight, 5 ludites in a room) and he said it's usually 1.000000 or under. . . . . but he was at pains to say that he didn't know what the variables were and what the company would take as being a bad reading or anything. . . . . ..

before he left he said he'd be calling in his readings "this afternoon, or maybe tonight", so it shouldn't be too long before npower get back to us.

So that's it! what is 2.04 - 2.09????? does anyone know? what does it all mean???????

We're still waiting ...