Spokane Valley restaurant on Avista Schedule 25. Smart meter stopped transmitting in July 2020. Avista went back to estimates but didn't realize the meter was still recording usage internally. When they finally read it manually in October, there was 4 months of under-billing. Client got hit with a $8,900 catch-up. Anyone else seeing smart meter communication failures?
Avista Smart meter stopped transmitting
Duke Energy Florida had widespread AMI failures during Hurricane Irma. Similar issue - meters recorded but couldn't transmit. They spread the catch-up over 6 months with no interest. Did Avista offer payment terms?
TECO here in Tampa has backup cellular modems on their smart meters. If primary RF fails, cellular kicks in. Sounds like Avista's system isn't as robust.
Avista offered 12-month payment plan with no interest. Client is considering it. The frustrating part is the meter was working fine - just the communication link failed. Should be utility's problem, not customer's.
Idaho Power had similar issues. Their smart meters have battery backup for the radio. When batteries die, they revert to manual reads. Seems like better design than estimating.
Avista's AMI system is hit or miss. I've seen multiple comm failures in the Spokane area. They need to upgrade their network infrastructure.
Communication failures on smart meters should trigger automatic alerts for manual reads within 30 days. Utilities can't have it both ways - claiming smart meters are more accurate while letting comm failures create billing surprises.