Present situation
Data belongs to you, not the energy company
Requires consent for sharing beyond billing purposes
Can request monthly rather than half-hourly readings
Right to have smart functionality disabled
Future AI/Surveillance Risks:
More granular data analysis could infer specific activities
Potential integration with other IoT devices and data sources
Government access during emergencies or investigations
Risk of data breaches exposing household patterns
Commercial profiling for targeted marketing
Mitigation Options:
**BUT! The UK Data Use Act 2025 smart meter privacy restrictions are relaxed considerably....
Key Changes Under the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025.
Relaxed Automated Decision-Making (ADM): Restrictions on solely automated decision making have been substantially relaxed, with the prohibition now applying only for special category data and where there is "no meaningful human involvement"
. This means energy companies can now use AI systems to make more decisions about your account based on smart meter data without human oversight. Enhanced Data Sharing: Universities, think tanks, and private research organisations gain clearer pathways for lawful data processing , potentially expanding who can access aggregated smart meter data for research purposes.
AI-Driven Processing: More sophisticated AI-driven processes are now allowed provided organisations implement
Smart Meter Surveillance Concerns:
But - Increased Risk Profile:
Energy companies can now deploy AI systems to automatically analyse your usage patterns for various purposes (pricing, credit decisions, marketing) with minimal human involvement
Your detailed consumption data becomes more valuable for automated profiling systems
Broader data sharing arrangements with research institutions may be permitted
Reduced Protections:
Previous safeguards requiring human involvement in automated decisions have been weakened
More sophisticated pattern recognition and behavioural analysis can be applied to your energy data
Less regulatory friction for companies wanting to monetize usage insights
This does materially change the privacy calculation for smart meters. The surveillance concerns you mentioned are now more legitimate given these relaxed restrictions on automated processing of personal data. The trade-off between billing convenience and privacy has shifted further toward privacy risk.
Smart meters are positioned to become a significant revenue stream through data monetization, and the recent Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 has made this more viable.
How the Revenue Stream Works:
Direct Data Sales:
Aggregated consumption patterns sold to market research firms
Behavioural insights sold to retailers and service providers
Demographic and lifestyle profiling data for targeted advertising
Energy usage benchmarking data for insurance companies
AI-Enhanced Value: With the relaxed automated decision-making restrictions, energy companies can now:
Use AI to extract more sophisticated insights from your usage patterns
Create detailed consumer profiles without meaningful human oversight
Package and sell these AI-generated insights to third parties leading to:-
Indirect Revenue:
Partnership deals with smart home device manufacturers
Commission from targeted product recommendations based on usage
Premium services sold based on your consumption analysis
Credit scoring services using energy payment and usage patterns
The Business Model Shift:
Energy suppliers are increasingly seeing you as data sources, not just energy consumers. Your half-hourly usage data creates a detailed picture of your household that's valuable to:
Insurance companies (home occupancy patterns)
Retailers (lifestyle and spending capacity indicators)
Financial services (creditworthiness assessment)
Healthcare companies (activity level indicators)
Security companies (home occupancy patterns)
Reality Check: While companies claim data is "anonymized," AI can often re-identify individuals from seemingly anonymous datasets, especially when combined with other data sources.
The "free" smart meter installation is increasingly looking like a classic tech industry model - the product (your data) pays for the service. You're essentially providing the raw material for a data harvesting operation while paying for the energy on top. This fundamentally changes the cost-benefit analysis of smart meter installation.
Stripping away the marketing hype, there are NO meaningful consumer advantages to smart meters.
Supposed Benefits That Don't Hold Up:
"Real-time usage monitoring" - Most people check it briefly then ignore it
"Help reduce energy bills" - You can reduce usage just as easily by reading your regular meter monthly
"No more meter readings" - This benefits the energy company's operational costs, not you. Could also lead to job losses
"More accurate bills" - Standard meters are already accurate; estimated readings are a billing convenience issue, not a meter issue. Simply send them the meter reading readings.
What You Actually Get:
Same electricity at the same price
Same monthly/quarterly bills (just calculated differently)
Temporary behaviour change that reverts to your usual pattern within months
Increased data collection and privacy risks
Potential connectivity issues and replacement headaches
The Real Winners: Energy Companies:
Eliminate meter reading costs
Gain valuable behavioural data to monetize
Enable dynamic pricing structures that typically favour them
Reduce customer service costs through automation
Government:
Better grid management data, turn you up down or off as necessary
Enhanced surveillance capabilities, integrated with all the other Internet-of-Things that are already surveilling you
Reduced regulatory burden on suppliers. They have more freedom now and it's more difficult for you challenge
Data Brokers and Tech Companies: Basically they make money from you.
New revenue streams from household behaviour analytics
You're paying for the privilege of providing free labour (self-monitoring) and free data (detailed usage patterns) to companies that profit from both. The "easier monitoring" claim is particularly hollow - a plug-in electricity monitor gives you the same usage information without the privacy invasion for less than a tenner.
The smart meter rollout is essentially a data collection infrastructure project disguised as a consumer benefit program. The fact they're pushing so hard for universal adoption despite minimal consumer benefits should tell you everything about who really benefits. Do the really think we're stupid enough to let a genuine opportunity to save money slip by?
Questions:
"What's my specific financial benefit given my current usage patterns?"
"How will you monetize my usage data and who will you share it with?"
"Why should I provide free data collection services to your company?" (
Automated AI decisions (ADM )based on my consumption - what safeguards protect me?" How do toy argue with a computer?
The "Inevitable" Timeline:
it's eventually inevitable, but "eventually" keeps getting pushed back. The government's original deadline was 2020, then 2024, now it's more of a "when practical" approach. Each delay suggests the business case isn't as compelling as claimed.
You can say no
You have legal right to refuse
No penalties for saying no
Each "no" costs them money in repeated sales calls/visits
You can always change your mind later, but can't easily undo the privacy implications
The pressure tactics (frequent calls, door visits, "limited time" offers) are telling. If smart meters were genuinely beneficial to consumers, they wouldn't need such aggressive sales approaches. Companies don't typically have to pressure customers into accepting something that saves them money.
