Who is Responsible For Replacing Your Comms Hub

If your smart meter’s communications hub has failed, one of the first questions is who actually has to fix it. This guide gives you a straight answer — and explains what to do if your supplier tries to push the responsibility back onto you.

Your supplier is responsible — full stop

The communications hub is smart metering equipment provided and installed by your energy supplier. It remains their equipment and their responsibility to maintain, repair and replace throughout the life of your smart meter system.

You should not be charged for a replacement hub. You should not be charged for the engineer visit to fit it. If your supplier suggests otherwise, that is incorrect.

This applies regardless of how long you have had the meter, whether you have switched supplier since it was installed, and whether the failure appears to be caused by a network upgrade rather than a hardware fault.

What if you have switched supplier since the meter was installed?

Your current supplier is responsible — not the supplier who originally installed the meter. When you switch, responsibility for your smart metering equipment transfers to your new supplier. If your communications hub fails after a switch, your current supplier cannot tell you it is the previous supplier’s problem.

This is a common area of confusion and occasionally a deflection tactic. Your current supplier owns the relationship and the obligation.

What if the hub failed because of a network upgrade?

The UK smart meter network is being upgraded from 2G and 3G to 4G. Some older communications hubs are not compatible with the upgraded network and stop working as the upgrade reaches their area. This is a known, structural part of the rollout — not something you caused or could have prevented.

Your supplier is still responsible for replacing incompatible hubs as part of the network upgrade. You should not be penalised for infrastructure changes that are outside your control.

What your supplier must do and when

Once you formally report the fault, your supplier must provide a specific resolution plan within 5 working days under Ofgem’s Guaranteed Standards of Performance.

That plan should tell you what they intend to do and when. If they miss the 5-day deadline you may be entitled to £40 automatic compensation.

Use these words when you contact them:

“I am making a formal complaint. My communications hub has failed and needs replacing. I require a formal complaint reference number.”

Always ask for your reference number before ending the call. Without it your contact is likely logged as a service request — not a formal complaint — and the 5-day clock won’t have started.

If your problem is not resolved within 8 weeks you can escalate to the Energy Ombudsman free of charge.

If your supplier says it is your responsibility

Some customers are told the hub failure is their problem, that the warranty has expired, or that they need to pay for a visit. This is not correct. Put your complaint in writing using the letter generator below. A written formal complaint is much harder to deflect than a phone call.

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