Pay as you go Gas Meter

paddy147

Just had Bord Gais install a new "Pay as you go" gas meter.

Its a simple bit of kit,that works off a top up card.

You go to a shop,top up the card by any amount up to 50 euro,stick the card into the meter.

The meter reads the card and amount on it,and the meter then gives you that value in gas.

Got the meter installed for free too.

Its a great way to manage the gas usage and keep tabs on the gas and money too.

Pic of the meter and card to follow.:)

JohnnieK

There's loads of them around. There a pain in the bum if you are trying to commission a boiler and you find out there's little or no credit left on the reserve:D.

sullzz

paddy147 wrote: »

Just had Bord Gais install a new "Pay as you go" gas meter.

Its a simple bit of kit,that works off a top up card.

You go to a shop,top up the card by any amount up to 50 euro,stick the card into the meter.

The meter reads the card and amount on it,and the meter then gives you that value in gas.

Got the meter installed for free too.

Its a great way to manage the gas usage and keep tabs on the gas and money too.

Pic of the meter and card to follow.:)

Great way to budget but what happens when you get snowed in and cant get to the shop to top up the card or you manage to make your way through the snow to the shop and the machine is out of order ....... No heat????

roy rodgers

sullzz wrote: »

Great way to budget but what happens when you get snowed in and cant get to the shop to top up the card or you manage to make your way through the snow to the shop and the machine is out of order ....... No heat????[/QUOT




Or buy one of these for just in case.:D:D:D:D:D

paddy147

roy rodgers wrote: »

sullzz wrote: »

Great way to budget but what happens when you get snowed in and cant get to the shop to top up the card or you manage to make your way through the snow to the shop and the machine is out of order ....... No heat????[/QUOT

The shop is about 60 yards down the road from me,and theres also such a thing called legs and using them to walk to said shop.;):D

wush06

Hi does anybody have any links from where you can get these from thanks.

sullzz

paddy147 wrote: »

roy rodgers wrote: »

The shop is about 60 yards down the road from me,and theres also such a thing called legs and using them to walk to said shop.;):D

Legs ???? Oh yeah they are them things that ill be stretching out on the recliner with my laptop resting on them paying my gas bill on line while your using yours to battle through the wind rain and snow to get to the shop to top up your card :D:p:)

sullzz

wush06 wrote: »

Hi does anybody have any links from where you can get these from thanks.

Bord gais , they are offering them to people who are having trouble paying their bill , i think the usually cost about €330 , but they are doing it for free at the moment

DoneDL

But isn`t the gas more expensive due to administation costs, resets etc, or does it differ from the UK model.

sullzz

They are offering this free to people who are in arrears , if you take them up on their offer , when you top up your card , lets say by €20 they take a fraction of what you owe them off that€20 and so on until the balance of your outstanding bill is cleared , i know these are fitted in most council estates , halting sites and would be great for landlords renting out a house where there is a risk he could be left stuck with a huge bill , or for someone who cannot manage their money well , but other than that i feel it would be such an incovienience , run out of credit , no heat and in my case with a combi boiler it also means no hot water .
I got rid of my pay as you go phone years ago because i got sick of running out of credit at the most inconvienient times .

sullzz

sullzz wrote: »

I got rid of my pay as you go phone years ago because i got sick of running out of credit at the most inconvienient times .

As someone who is a better gasman than businessman:), I have been the proud owner of Prepayment meter in the past, running out of credit isn't problem as you get a small amount of emergency gas giving time to put money on the card, the real problem is if the meter doesn't take the credit or if it locks out and requires resetting by a engineer.

wush06

sullzz wrote: »

Bord gais , they are offering them to people who are having trouble paying their bill , i think the usually cost about €330 , but they are doing it for free at the moment

Paddy147 can you confirm that this is the case. Or pm me if you don't mind.
Thanks.

Joey the lips

If you have had one of this installed then you most likely have credit issues with board gais. With due respect I would not be advertising i have one of these. The principle is simple.

One third goes off your arrers and two thirds for fuel.

They are not a ready to go system.

As you may know i do a lot of community work and believe me these are not the way to go.

warmglow

joey is assuming you have issues with credit - that is only one such function of these meters

bord gais networks are now happy to give these meters to anyone who wants them - they charge a higher price per unit of gas plus you are prepaying for gas - the old way you were getting credit from gas company

win win all the way for gas board ,

they used to be used solely for people in arrears and rental accomadation but now they have a much wider function , effectively a cash generating one

Joey the lips

warmglow wrote: »

joey is assuming you have issues with credit - that is only one such function of these meters

bord gais networks are now happy to give these meters to anyone who wants them - they charge a higher price per unit of gas plus you are prepaying for gas - the old way you were getting credit from gas company

win win all the way for gas board ,

they used to be used solely for people in arrears and rental accomadation but now they have a much wider function , effectively a cash generating one

This is not correct... Unless you know something that the rest of the country does not. They will not install these meters unless they have to. Like i said already if they did i would know about it.

Additionally

1, They wont fit them to apartments.
2. They wont fit them without a letter from your landlord if renting. Meaning your landlord knows your in arrers
3. They wont fit them for economy 7

warmglow

Joey the lips wrote: »

This is not correct... Unless you know something that the rest of the country does not. They will not install these meters unless they have to. Like i said already if they did i would know7

joey this is correct , I have done this on behalf of a number of my customers . ring networks , that's the deal in south Dublin .

why would you have to know if this was available ? who or what are you or do you have a connection to networks ?


as I said its a cash generating source for them now , perfect business sense - prepay and charge higher per unit .

as a matter of fact , my mother had one of these meters in there original form years ago , not with a credit issue , she wanted to better control her bills on a pension so it was for budget measures , suited her at the time .

heinbloed

Interesting.

How does it work to change the supplier when being hooked to board gais' meter ?
Would a new client be accepted at all with such a credit record ?

Or is it Board Gais Grid and not Board Gas Supply who owns the pre-pay meter?

Would one have to change the meter if changing to another suplier?

And what costs are involved to get out the pre-paid Board Gais system to another (pre-paid) supplier? The old pre-pay meter out. the line disconnected, reconnected and a new pre-paid meter in? This could cost a thousand Euros - if necessary at all.

@ Paddy147:

Who not using your heat pump ( the "solar system working at night") for heating? To expensive? Why gas ?
Sure the standing charges for a gas connection on their own would pay for bottled gas for cooking and baking? Or for the electricity.

warmglow

http://www.bordgais.ie/networks/index.jsp?p=348&n=724

the software in them can and is used for debt recovery but the meter is also installed in non debt recovery situations

I have taken the next part from the commission for energy regulation criteria document

Prepayment meters have, up to now, been used to allow customers with payment arrears to continue consuming gas while gradually repaying their arrears.  Understandably, these meters have had a social stigma attached to them.  However there are positive reasons to use prepaid gas.  Customer who are paid weekly or fortnighly prefer to pay their bills at the same frequency.  Credit meter customers are billed every two months and, although suppliers may offer monthly budget payments by direct debit, this option is open only to customers with a current bank account.  Many low-income consumers do not have bank accounts. A sizable proportion of mobile phone users now prefer to avail of the prepaid option in order to control their usage and to avoid bills and the build-up of debt, despite paying a higher tariff than a user with a credit account.  There is no social stigma attached to this method of payment for mobile phone use, nor should there be.
 
The service by which customers charge up their gas cards is provided by Paypoint at a number of retail outlets such as newsagents, grocery shops and service stations. The gas card is charged up by the retailer and the terminal records the meter reading held on the card. The payment amount and meter reading are sent to the supplier in a daily file download and the payments are sent directly to the supplier’s bank account.


http://www.cer.ie/cerdocs/cer06181.doc

I await your apology

warmglow

@heinbloed

none of my customers have had them taken out yet so I can't answer you with any fact but I will try to find out

I was told by an engineer from emerald that although the meters are now free there is a charge to take them out if thats required but that's only 2nd hand news

don't know about changing suppliers but I will ask about it Monday

roy rodgers

I have to agree with warmglow joey. I has seen these perpay meters installed on new installations all you have to do is ask for one..

heinbloed

Thanks, warmglow !

Joey the lips

That is new information to me and excuse me if i offended. The interesting thing is i now have to find out why they have not been giving them out when we asked for them. Thanks it seems you know something that a lot of us did not.

I have read the documents and i still cannot see how "you can just get them" but its interesting.

warmglow

Joey the lips wrote: »

Thanks it seems you know something that a lot of us did not.

I have read the documents and i still cannot see how "you can just get them" but its interesting.

no the information is available to anyone . that CER document was published in 2006 .

if you want one ring bord gais networks for yourself , not a client or person in debt , as stated before its two separate things debt arrears and conscious budgeting .

paddy147

wush06 wrote: »

Paddy147 can you confirm that this is the case. Or pm me if you don't mind.
Thanks.

Bord Gais are installing these metere for FREE.

All you have to do is ring them up and request a "pay as you go" meter to be installed,

Bord Gais will then arrange a date and time with you,for an engineer to call out and remove the old meter and install a new meter.

My old meter was inside the house,so it was very and is very handy to have it changed over to the pay as you go meter.

There is 10 euro worth of emergency credit pre installed onto the card,and the 1st time you top up the card,you need to top up by 20 euro,so that the meter takes back the 10 euro worth of emergency credit.

This will also mean that people will be much more energy conscious and money conscious too,which in this day and age,can only be a good thing.

Regards.:)

PS-Pics to follow,seem to have lost my camera and am still loking for it.D;oh.:D

paddy147

heinbloed wrote: »

Interesting.

How does it work to change the supplier when being hooked to board gais' meter ?
Would a new client be accepted at all with such a credit record ?

Or is it Board Gais Grid and not Board Gas Supply who owns the pre-pay meter?

Would one have to change the meter if changing to another suplier?

And what costs are involved to get out the pre-paid Board Gais system to another (pre-paid) supplier? The old pre-pay meter out. the line disconnected, reconnected and a new pre-paid meter in? This could cost a thousand Euros - if necessary at all.

@ Paddy147:

Who not using your heat pump ( the "solar system working at night") for heating? To expensive? Why gas ?
Sure the standing charges for a gas connection on their own would pay for bottled gas for cooking and baking? Or for the electricity.

Heinbloed,-Theres a good few people here on this forum that may have more than 1 house or property.
So how do you know exactly which house/property this meter is for??
Answer is you dont.


Regards.

warmglow

hey paddy 147

your old meter was inside yes ? did they locate the new one outside for you for free ?

Joey the lips

paddy its not necessary for you to prove anything and just incase you have not noticed Warmglow has been banned, not because of the comments but because he is a duplicate account of a previously banned account by me for bullying. I needed to deal with this the way i did to test this.

Thanks again.

paddy147

Joey the lips wrote: »

paddy its not necessary for you to prove anything and just incase you have not noticed Warmglow has been banned, not because of the comments but because he is a duplicate account of a previously banned account by me for bullying. I needed to deal with this the way i did to test this.

Thanks again.

Thanks Joey for the support.

Ive no problem in posting pics,to show others what the meter looks like and how easy it is to use.

So here they are (at last).........


Some pics,as promised.

Hope this helps.:)

paddy147

sullzz wrote: »

paddy147 wrote: »

Legs ???? Oh yeah they are them things that ill be stretching out on the recliner with my laptop resting on them paying my gas bill on line while your using yours to battle through the wind rain and snow to get to the shop to top up your card :D:p:)

Yep,all the fresh air and excercise by walking to the shop is really bad for the human body and mind,isnt it.;):)

In all seriousness,I posted this thread to make others,who may be landlords,or who maybe having difficulty in paying their gas bills,aware of this "pay as you go" gas meter and thats its available for free to the public now.

Ring up Bord Gais and request 1 installed for free.Its that simple and easy.

The normal instalation price would be around the 375 euro mark,so having it installed for free,is a good deal

It might help out some people here.

I would advise that prepayment meters should only be fitted when there is a reason i.e debt management or for landlords to control gas usage, the reason for this is your adding technology to a very simplistic measuring device, the technology can fail leaving you without.

Joey the lips

Just spoke to bord gais on this today. As i said i have a few people that might be interested in it. I asked a couple of simple questions.

1. How is the unit charge calculated.

The unit charge is calculated at the point of loading up the card. ie the card knows that at this time 10 euro gets 10 units but next time 10 euro might get 11 units. You pay no more or less than the current unit charge that the standard customer is on.ie you dont pay a premium.Smart card i thought!

2. What is the charge to have this installed.

Free of charge to all customers not in arrers an agreement will have to be reached with arrers customers.

3. How do you switch to another provider with this system.

You dont. You must have the card machine removed.

4. How much is it to have the card machine removed

219.41 euro


I then spoke to ESB and asked if the system was universal. They said no. Infact they said at the moment they have no intention to introduce a meter system to people not in arrers because they have the easy pay system for doing this. If you do manage to get the ESB to install this then you have to pay 79.45 for the privaliage.

The contradiction of this system is something i will be raising myself with the minister for energy, the energy regulator(if they listen) and the minister for social welfare.

To sum up the 3 primary criteria you must meet to have any of these is

1. You must be a home owner or have the landlords consent.

2. You must not be on an easy pay system or energy saver night rate

3. You must not live in an apartment.


personally. I would be more comfortable joining my local Credit union budget plan but each to there own.

heinbloed

Thanks for investigating the details, Joey the lips !

plys

Moved into a house this week with one of these PAYG meter attachments installed. Was with BG for electricity and gas in my last place, I am assuming I will lose my bundle discount because of the PAYG gas.

I'll be phoning BG to move my account over tomorrow, but if they aren't offering me any discount I'll change electricity provider to Airtricity.

Has anyone else been in a similar situation? If so, what was the outcome?

I'm obviously loathe to pay >€200 to have the meter removed, I wonder would they waive that fee to keep my custom..?

gripcasey

Forgive my ignorance lads, are these meters place at gas boiler or outside in current meter box. thanks

sullzz

gripcasey wrote: »

Forgive my ignorance lads, are these meters place at gas boiler or outside in current meter box. thanks

It replaces existing meter outside

paddy147

plys wrote: »

Moved into a house this week with one of these PAYG meter attachments installed. Was with BG for electricity and gas in my last place, I am assuming I will lose my bundle discount because of the PAYG gas.

I'll be phoning BG to move my account over tomorrow, but if they aren't offering me any discount I'll change electricity provider to Airtricity.

Has anyone else been in a similar situation? If so, what was the outcome?

I'm obviously loathe to pay >€200 to have the meter removed, I wonder would they waive that fee to keep my custom..?

Do you own the house or are you a tenant and renting it??

Because if you a tenant and renting the house,then you cannot remove the meter.Bord Gais will only remove the meter as per the instructions from the person who got the meter installed and signed off on its instalation (the landlord).

You would have to contact and ask the landlord to have it changed,which I highly doubt he or she would do for you..

The landlord would have got the "pay as you go" meter installed in the house for a very specific reason,in the 1st place anyway.

paddy147

sullzz wrote: »

It replaces existing meter outside

Or inside,like in the case of old houses (see my pics on previous page).

sullzz

paddy147 wrote: »

Or inside,like in the case of old houses (see my pics on previous page).

the question asked was if they are placed at the boiler or in place if the meter outside , so not to confuse matters i said in place of the meter outside , because the person who asked the question obviously has their meter outside .

DGOBS

Joey, I admire your optimism 'next time you could get 11 units for €10'
Gas prices decreasing! That would be a nice change

Great info on that post 'patting you on the back'

jonevin

Hi guys I'd you have any questions about these feel free to ask as its my job to organise the fittings. Just to add also bord gais have pre approved permission from most local authorities to fit these meters. So council tenants are eligible to get one aswell for free.

paddy147

jonevin wrote: »

Hi guys I'd you have any questions about these feel free to ask as its my job to organise the fittings. Just to add also bord gais have pre approved permission from most local authorities to fit these meters. So council tenants are eligible to get one aswell for free.

I have to correct you there,on 1 point.

Council tennants under the RAS scheme WOULD NOT be allowed to apply to Bord Gais for these and have them installed,UNLESS they get PERMISSION from the landlord who gave the house to the council for the 4 year peroid,under the RAS Scheme.


The council technically rents the house from the owner/landlord for the 4 year period,but the owner still remains as the landlord in the event of anything needed for the house.

Thats how RAS works.

GASMANN

paddy147 wrote: »

I have to correct you there,on 1 point.

Council tennants under the RAS scheme WOULD NOT be allowed to apply to Bord Gais for these and have them installed,UNLESS they get PERMISSION from the landlord who gave the house to the council for the 4 year peroid,under the RAS Scheme.


The council technically rents the house from the owner/landlord for the 4 year period,but the owner still remains as the landlord in the event of anything needed for the house.

Thats how RAS works.

council tennants are not RAS tennants - as far as i know

jonevin

Sorry but I never mentioned RAS scheme tenants!! Sorry but I should have said all council tenants not renting under the RAS scheme...jesus

plys

paddy147 wrote: »

Do you own the house or are you a tenant and renting it??

Because if you a tenant and renting the house,then you cannot remove the meter.Bord Gais will only remove the meter as per the instructions from the person who got the meter installed and signed off on its instalation (the landlord).

You would have to contact and ask the landlord to have it changed,which I highly doubt he or she would do for you..

The landlord would have got the "pay as you go" meter installed in the house for a very specific reason,in the 1st place anyway.

Thanks paddy147, I'm a tenant. haven't approached the landlord about getting it removed... yet

paddy147

GASMANN wrote: »

council tennants are not RAS tennants - as far as i know

People on the city councils housing/accomodation list,council tennants,are put up in houses under the RAS Scheme

I spoke about this matter myself and at great lengths with a city council official from the housing section,over in Dublin City Council Head Offices,Wood Quay.


Under the RAS scheme,the owner of the house,is still "legally" the landlord,so the tennant that the city council puts into the house,cannot do anything without prior approval and permission from the landlord.

jonevin

All pm,s replyed too.. Thanks guys

Not all city council applicants end up on RAS scheme. Therefore as previously explained we already have permission from local and city councils all explained in pm,s anyway.

paddy147

jonevin wrote: »

All pm,s replyed too.. Thanks guys

Not all city council applicants end up on RAS scheme. .

Eh,a good few do end up on it,

So to say and post that "council tennants" can get a meter installed for free is actually missleading ( Read what you posted at the bottom of post 40),as not all council tenants can get it installed.

It would be entirely at the discretion of the landlord.

Im not argueing with you on this matter,Im merely stating that not "all" council tennants can just do this,as its perceived to be,by the post on tprevious page.

jonevin

Paddy you seem to be hung up on this RAS scheme. I have never mentioned it. I'm sure all people that have not been allocated social housing are fully aware of their situation. You are either allocated a house from a local authority or housing association or else you rent privately or go for RAS.

And like I said I am only speaking about local authority's as we speak we have permission from nearly all in the country.

I never said anything about offering RAS scheme tenants meters.

jonevin

sullzz wrote: »

paddy147 wrote: »

Or inside,like in the case of old houses (see my pics on previous page).

the question asked was if they are placed at the boiler or in place if the meter outside , so not to confuse matters i said in place of the meter outside , because the person who asked the question obviously has their meter outside .

To answer correctly, the meter replaces your existing meter, wherever that is fixed in your premise.

paddy147

jonevin wrote: »

Paddy you seem to be hung up on this RAS scheme. I have never mentioned it. I'm sure all people that have not been allocated social housing are fully aware of their situation. You are either allocated a house from a local authority or housing association or else you rent privately or go for RAS.

And like I said I am only speaking about local authority's as we speak we have permission from nearly all in the country.

I never said anything about offering RAS scheme tenants meters.

I know you never mentioned RAS,I am the one who did though.

For one important reason...................

Read what you posted at the bottom of post 40 again.

That clearly implies and suggests that all council tennants can apply for it.Not all tennants can apply for it and get it

Quite a good few council tennants are housed on the RAS scheme,so they clearly CANNOT apply for it.

Because even though Dublin City Council take the house for 4 years,and put the council tennant in that house,the house owner is still legally the landlord,as per the contract drawn up betwen the house owner and the city council.

Therefore,the "council tennant" cant do anything,unless they get full permission from the house owner/landlord.


What you posted at the bottom of post 40 is missleading to anyone reading it.

And all I am doing is making the point that not all council tennants can get the gas meter installed,just like that.


Regards.

paddy147

Council tennants should 1st contact the relevant city council/county council and/or land lord and enquire 1st.Then enquire from Bord gais.



regards.