** Had trouble with your smart meter? Email: mark.duell@mailonline.co.uk with what happened, your name and a picture, so you can feature on MailOnline **Nearly four million smart meters in Britain were not working properly by the end of last year, official data has revealed.
The Desnez figures were revealed as customers continue to report how faulty meters have left them with huge bills. Londoner's smart meter charged her for a house 270 miles away Jilly Bond was billed for another property Jilly Bond, an actress and audio book narrator, owns a flat in the house with husband Julian Gartside, a speech and language therapist.
The group also pointed out that the sharp increase in the number of meters not operating in smart mode was due to a data reporting error, which has been rectified in the latest Government figures. 'We would recommend that you send your supplier meter readings to make sure you receive accurate, rather than estimated, bills until all of the features of your smart meter have been restored.'
The 63-year-old Turner Prize-winning artist and broadcaster suggested the lack of phone signal at his studio may have affected the smart meter readings that had created the bill. And a Desnez spokeswoman told MailOnline and This is Money: 'Smart meters are helping consumers manage their energy use and save money, while driving the transition to a smarter and more flexible energy system.
The regulator added that if a meter loses smart functionality, the meter should continue to accurately measure usage as before, and customers will still be able to take manual readings from the meter in the traditional way.The number of domestic smart meters operating in smart mode is now at a total of 29millionBoiling a kettle in the evening energy peak could become more expensive under a new regime for dynamic pricing.
Doing the laundry through the night could become standard practice, although this flies in the face of safety advice linked to appliance fires. Smart meters will be central – they allow energy firms to change how much householders are charged at the touch of a button. A spokeswoman for Ofgem told MailOnline and This is Money: 'The way we use energy will look very different in the future, and the smart meter roll out is an integral part of moving to a cleaner, more efficient energy system, and empowering consumers to understand their energy use, and access innovative smart tariffs that could save them money.