Stay Legal
Are your meters legal?
Did you know that there are clearly defined laws and regulations in the UK governing the type of electricity & gas meters used for prepayment and billing purposes?
MID (Measuring Instruments Directive) replaced the old Ofgem legislation and became law in October 2016. The idea of this new legislation is to align Landlords and energy resellers with the Energy Supply Companies.
It is illegal to resell energy through a meter that is not MID Approved.
Consumer confidence
The purpose of the new MID regulation is to protect the consumer by ensuring that all meters used for billing purposes are manufactured under controlled conditions in order to ensure accuracy and reliability.
It is essential that Landlords and Property Managers understand their legal obligation to use MID approved meters for billing their consumers. The consequences of using unapproved meters are that consumers will have a right to refuse to pay for their energy and the Landlord may be liable to prosecution.
Prior to October 2016, meters installed in the UK had to be of a type approved by Ofgem (Office of Gas & Electricity Markets). New legislation introduced in October 2016 now means that all meters installed for billing purposes must be approved to new MID standards (Measuring Instruments Directive).
Useful information
OFFICE OF GAS & ELECTRICITY MARKETS
All electricity and gas meters manufactured before 2006 and installed prior to October 2016 MUST by law be of a type approved by The Office of Gas & Electricity Markets (Ofgem) in accordance with the Electricity Act 1989. To find out more, please follow these links:
MID (MEASURING INSTRUMENTS DIRECTIVE)
All electricity and gas meters manufactured and installed since 2006 MUST meet the standards of the Measuring Instruments Directive (MID). This is a legal requirement and it is the Landlord’s/energy reseller’s responsibility to ensure that their meters comply with this regulation. To find out more about this directive, please follow this link:
SUPPORTING DOCUMENTATION
Your Meter Supplier MUST be able to demonstrate that their meters conform to MID Approval standards. For examples of the supporting documentation that you can request just follow these links:
CE Declaration of Conformity document
MID Approval document