Meter reading
Have you ever had any trouble reading your meter? Do you sometimes receive bills that have an estimated meter reading and would like to ensure an accurate reading?
Here at Ebico we only want you to pay for what you use. It’s a simple idea. That’s why we try to read your meters every six months. So you are only paying for exactly what you’ve used. If for some reason we are not able to read your meter, we will send you a bill based on an estimated read.
Estimated readings
Estimated readings are noted by an (E) next to the reading on the bill. Sometimes estimates will be higher, or lower than your actual usage, and therefore your bill could be more or less expensive than it should be. If you don’t like receiving these bills, there are two things you can do:
- Make sure your meter is accessible to a meter reader.
- Update us by giving in your own meter readings online, or by calling our partner’s meter line on 0800 220 995.
We understand that for some customers who have meters indoors, and are not readily available when a meter reader calls, the second option is more applicable – however, reading your own meter can be tricky. So we’re here to help.
(Jump to ‘How do I read my gas meter?’)
How do I read my electricity meter?
Digital electricity meter
The screen on your electric meter will show your reading like in the diagram below.
- Read the numbers from left to right, including any 0s at the beginning. Do not read any red number(s). The reading in the example is 94694.
- If you have an Economy 7 meter you’ll have 2 rows of figures
The row marked LOW is the rate for night or off-peak units
The row marked NORMAL is the rate for day or peak units - Read each row in the same way you would a single rate meter. Make a note of which reading is low and which is normal.
- When the meter reaches 99,999 the meter will start recording from 0 again.
- If you want to find out how many units you’ve used, simply take away your previous reading from your new reading.
Dial electricity meter
The dial meter is a little more tricky to read than a digital or electronic meter, but the steps below should help.
Your dial meter will look similar to this:
- Read the dials from left to right starting with the dial marked 10,000. Do not read the dial marked 1/10.
- If the pointer on a dial is between two numbers, write down the lower number. This may not be the number nearest to the pointer.
- If the pointer is between 0 and 9, use 9.
- If the pointer is exactly on a number, write it down and underline it.
- If any of the underlined numbers you have written down are followed by a 9, you will need to take one away from the number you’ve underlined.
- So the reading in the example is 94694.
Electronic electricity meter
Few Ebico customers have an Electronic electric, but you may have one if you are on an Economy 7 price plan. Here’s how to read your meter:
- Find the display button on the front of the meter.
- Press the button to go though the information. Note down everything that is displayed. Different electronic meters go through the information in different orders. But don’t worry – the meter readings will be clear.
- Letters or numbers will come up on the display to show which rate the
reading is for.
For example:
R1 or R2
1 or 2
L or N
Low or Normal - Some information displayed won’t be meter readings, such as the date and time. We don’t need this information.
- Some meters show the total reading. It may have the letter ‘t’ by it. This is the total of two other meter readings added together. We don’t need the total reading.
- Sometimes you’ll need to go through all the information twice in order to get the readings.
If you have difficulty reading your electronic meter, please contact us on 0800 096 6344.
How to read your gas meters
Digital gas meter
Your gas meter will measure the amount of gas you use imperially or metrically. This means there are two types of each gas meter:
Imperial gas meter
The reading on an imperial meter will look like this example:
- Read the first four numbers from left to right, including any 0s at the beginning. Do not read the red number(s) or any numbers following the red number(s). So the reading in this example is 1234.
- When the meter read reaches 9,999 the meter will start recording from 0 again.
Metric gas meter
The reading on a metric meter will look like this example:
- Read the first five numbers from left to right, including any 0s at the beginning. Do not read any of the numbers after a decimal point or space. So the reading in the example is 32764.
- When the meter reaches 99,999 the meter will start recording from 0 again.
If you want to find out how many units you’ve used, simply take away your previous reading from your new reading.
Dial Gas Meter
To read a dial gas meter, look at the position of the pointers on the dials. The dials will look like this diagram, which shows a large dial and five small dials:
- Read the dials from left to right. Do not read the large dial or any red dials.
- When the pointer is between two numbers, write down the lower number. This may not be the number nearest to the pointer.
- If the number is between 9 and 0, use 9.
- If the pointer is exactly on a number, write it down and underline it.
- If any of the underlined numbers you have written down are followed by a 9, you’ll need to take one away from the number you’ve underlined.
- So the reading in the example is 9476.
