Energy meter rules as households could be breaking the law

Ofgem has issued an urgent alert

Ofgem has issued an urgent warning to every household with gas and electricity meters.

It has warned that people could not only be breaking the law but also putting their lives at serious risk. Ofgem (the Office of Gas and Electricity Markets) acts as the UK’s energy regulator. As a non-ministerial government department, its principal role is to protect the interests of energy consumers. In a recent post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Ofgem warned: “Tampering with your meter is illegal and could be dangerous.”

The alert also includes a link to the Ofgem website, which explains that “energy theft” takes place when individuals attempt to cut their gas and electricity bills by interfering with their meters. It cautions: “It can cause property damage, injury or death.”

According to Ofgem, meter tampering leads to one death every 10 days, with electric shocks, severe burns, house fires, fatal gas leaks and explosions all being potential outcomes of energy theft. The regulator has also advised people to “be wary of people offering to reduce your energy bills by making changes to your meter.”

Common signs a gas meter has been tampered with include:

• pipes that appear misplaced
• dials that aren’t moving or are obscured
• gas flowing despite no credit on prepayment meters
• the meter installed backwards with dials concealed
• the odour of gas around the meter box
• rubber tubing where metal piping should be

Typical indicators of electricity meter interference include:

• exposed wires, coiled around components or attached with clips
• broken casing
• electricity flowing despite no credit on prepayment meters
• a burning odour
• smoke or sparks in the vicinity of the meter