![]() She said utility companies have had no data breaches, and though she expects they will eventually, she says consumers are at very little risk because the meters aren’t transmitting personal financial information such as credit card numbers.Īnd, proponents say, criminals looking to rob a home are much more likely to lurk outside someone’s house than they are to hack their network.Įventually more people will have appliances that hook into a home’s smart meter to use power more efficiently, saving them money on utility bills, Harnish said. Patty Durand, the group’s director, said the meters don’t transmit that kind of data and only send information about how much electricity is being used. In fact I see them becoming more complex as more utility companies install these technologies,” said Shear, who also worries that hackers could steal customers’ personal and financial information.īut advocates for smart meters - such as the nonprofit Smart Grid Consumer Collaborative, which is supported by utility companies, and consumer and conservation groups - say those worries are misplaced. For example, by looking at when power is being used, a thief could determine when a house is empty, said Bradley Shear, a Maryland-based privacy lawyer. Expectation of Privacyīecause smart meters convey information over wireless networks, some opponents worry the data they transmit could be stolen and used by criminals to target individual homes. But few people actually choose to opt out of smart meters, said Marc Harnish, an analyst with the EIA. Maryland residents who reject smart meters pay a one-time fee and an additional. Glen Glass, a Republican from Maryland who plans to introduce legislation that would prevent utility companies from charging extra to customers who refuse smart meters. “There’s no reason to charge someone for something they don’t want,” said Del. Eighty-nine percent of those were installed in homes.īut opponents say the meters have been forced upon consumers who don’t want the digital devices and the fees many utility companies charge those customers are unjust. ![]() The meters are touted as a way to cut energy use and save customers money by allowing better monitoring of consumption so utilities can adjust production and consumers can change their habits.īuoyed by million in federal funding in 2009, utilities had installed nearly 52 million smart meters by 2013, according to the U.S. And energy industry representatives say the devices make it easier to pinpoint and respond to power outages, and could lead to more accurate pricing that reflects how gas and electricity costs fluctuate throughout the day. The meters also allow consumers to track their own energy use. ![]() Smart meters measure the consumption of energy as customers use it and submit that information to utility companies, eliminating the need to estimate bills and to visit homes and businesses to read meters. ![]() This year, lawmakers in Maryland, Massachusetts, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Texas are expected to consider bills that would allow consumers to keep their existing analog meters require customers to opt in to smart meter programs or allow them to refuse the devices, sometimes at no cost. The wireless devices - designed to measure gas and electricity consumption and help consumers save money - have other critics, such as privacy advocates who argue they could violate customers’ privacy and consumer advocates who complain they could lead to higher utility bills.ĭriven by these concerns, legislators in several states have moved to give consumers options when it comes to installing smart meters in their homes.Īccording to the National Conference of State Legislatures, at least 15 states allow customers to opt out of smart meter installation, although many permit utility companies to impose a fee on customers who don’t want the meters. Then he needed two root canals.ĭavidson is among a small but outspoken group of people who say the radio frequencies coming from so-called smart meters installed in their homes are making them sick. Shortly after Joe Davidson moved into his Cincinnati apartment, he noticed his joints were achy and he wasn’t sleeping well. A Burlington Electric employee checks the radio frequency of a smart meter in Vermont, which in 2012 became the first state to allow electric customers to refuse smart meters at no added cost.
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