According to a recent survey two-thirds of gas and electricity customers have no idea how much they are paying per unit of energy or how their bill is calculated and this includes many businesses. The way suppliers have over complicated their bills has stopped millions of people from switching supplier. The new government has reiterated its commitment to force the energy companies to be more transparent with its bills. Ofgem is also bringing pressure on the energy firms to speed up the introduction of Smart Meters.

This where the confusion starts as the energy suppliers have started to give away free energy monitors, this not to be confused with energy smart meters that actually replace the existing meter. Is this just another way to bamboozle customers? Whilst energy monitors are extremely useful they won’t eliminate the dreaded estimated bill.

In October 2008 the Government announced its intention to mandate a roll out of electricity and gas smart meters to all homes in Great Britain, with the aim of completing the roll out by the end 2020. The aim - to encourage more economical use of power every home and business will have a new high-tech meter installed that will measure just how much energy is used. With the new Smart Meter customers will be able to see how energy savings can be made by turning off appliances and changing usage patterns. Smart Meters allow customers to regulate demand, as readings can be taken every half hour. The new smart meters will automatically send readings and will end the need of meter reading, estimated bills, and errors relating to under and over payments.