I'm Shocked That .gov Mandated Tech Doesn't Work as Advertised

Smart Meters were going to save the world. Or maybe not. Watts Up With That: Seven Million Smart Meters Need to Be Upgraded

And that should probably be "replaced" not upgraded.

Billpayers will be forced to foot the cost of upgrading seven million smart meters which will become obsolete in less than 10 years, the spending watchdog has warned.

In a damning report highlighting a number of failures in the smart meter roll out, the The Public Accounts Committee said seven million smart meters would need to be replaced before the 2G and 3G networks they use are switched off in 2033.

99.9% of the London Telegraph disappeared behind a paywall a few years back, otherwise I would link to the main article.

Oh, and not only did they design in obsolescence, they don't seem to be providing all of the savings that they were supposed to provide.

Ministers are also facing growing questions about its purported money-saving benefits to households, with Dame Meg Hillier, chair of the committee, saying the evidence of whether smart meters in fact benefited consumers was “unclear”.

And this being 2023, they have to point out the racial disparities.

Smart meters were also said to be most likely to benefit rich, old men who own their own houses, the report said, while low-income renters are at risk of being “left behind” because blocks of flats pose a headache for installers to fit the devices.

When you add all of that together, the UK is far behind their official targets for getting everyone on smart meters.

I'm not sure exactly what smart meters in the UK do, so it is hard to judge how they could save money for people, except if they allow the powers-that-be to shut your power off at certain times of the day. The smart meter I have merely allows the Power Company to "read the meter" by only having the guy drive down the street.