Utility Scams
Smart Meter Scam Calls UK: What Genuine Energy Contacts Look Like
Cold callers pose as energy suppliers claiming your smart meter needs urgent replacement or a safety check. How to tell a genuine contact from a scam.
Utility Scams UK: Energy Calls, Meters & Solar Offers
Fake energy supplier calls, smart meter doorstep visits and solar grant offers. What a genuine energy contact looks like, and how to check an installer.
Utility scams work because the subject is plausible. Meters really are replaced, energy schemes really exist, and a caller who knows your supplier is not necessarily who they say they are.
The reliable move is always the same: end the contact and get back in touch using a number from your own bill or the supplier’s website. A caller who objects to that has told you what you need to know.
Calls and doorstep visits
Our British Gas scam call guide covers supplier impersonation by phone — the account ‘problem’, the refund that needs your card, and the pressure to act during the call. Our smart meter scam call guide covers the doorstep version, including the ‘safety hazard’ framing used to get someone inside.
Genuine engineers carry identification you can verify by calling the supplier on a number you found yourself, and a genuine visit is booked in advance rather than arriving unannounced with a deadline.
Where the smart meter rollout has actually reached
Great Britain has been rolling out smart meters since 2011, and installations continue there. Northern Ireland is different: no smart electricity meters have been installed yet, with first installations planned for 2028 and completion by 2030.
That matters for spotting a scam. Anyone in Northern Ireland told their smart meter needs urgent replacement does not have one to replace.
Solar panels, grants and 'free' schemes
Our solar panel scam guide covers online offers built around grants and guaranteed savings. Real schemes exist — the Boiler Upgrade Scheme and the Smart Export Guarantee among them — which is precisely why invented ones are believable.
Check an installer on the MCS register before paying a deposit, and be wary of a quote that is only available today. A genuine scheme survives a night’s thought.
Never let a scam stop you reporting a real emergency
If you smell gas or suspect a leak, call the National Gas Emergency Service on 0800 111 999 straight away. For a power cut, call 105. Both are free, and neither will ask you for payment or bank details.
These are separate from any scam concern. Deal with the safety issue first.
If you have paid or let someone in
Contact your bank immediately and say the payment may be authorised push payment fraud. If someone entered your home, check what was taken or photographed and consider changing any documents or details they may have seen.
Contact your supplier through a number from your bill to confirm whether any visit or account change was genuine.
How to report a utility scam in the UK
Report it to Report Fraud at reportfraud.police.uk or 0300 123 2040 in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, or Police Scotland on 101 in Scotland.
For consumer advice, Citizens Advice covers England and Wales, Advice Direct Scotland covers Scotland, and Consumerline covers Northern Ireland. Forward scam texts free to 7726 and suspicious emails to report@phishing.gov.uk.
All utility scams guides
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Solar Panel Scam UK: Fake Online Deals & Grants
A social media ad claims a government scheme covers free solar panels? No checked scheme works that way — here's how to verify before signing.
Utility Scams
British Gas Scam Call UK: Spot a Fake Contact
A caller claiming to be British Gas wants full bank details or a PIN? Treat it as a scam and call back using a number you already trust.
Common questions
Does my energy supplier cold-call about a meter replacement?
Suppliers do contact customers about meter work, so a call on the subject is not proof of a scam. What settles it is calling back on a number from your own bill rather than one the caller gives you.
Are smart meters being installed in Northern Ireland?
Not yet. Great Britain has been rolling them out since 2011, but no smart electricity meters have been installed in Northern Ireland, with first installations planned for 2028 and completion by 2030.
How do I check a solar installer is genuine?
Look them up on the MCS register yourself, and confirm any grant scheme through GOV.UK rather than through the installer's own paperwork. Do not pay a deposit against a deadline set by the seller.
I smell gas but I think the call I had was a scam. What do I do first?
Deal with the gas. Call the National Gas Emergency Service on 0800 111 999 immediately. A scam concern does not change what a suspected gas leak needs.
Sources checked
- National Gas — Emergency contacts
- Gas Safe Register — Check an engineer
- Smart Energy GB — The Priority Services Register
- Department for the Economy — Design plan for the roll-out of smart electricity meters
- Utility Regulator — Policy decision on the Smart Meter Design Plan
- GOV.UK — Apply for the Boiler Upgrade Scheme
- Ofgem — Smart Export Guarantee (SEG)
- MCS — Find an installer
- GOV.UK — Consumer advice services for England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland
- Report Fraud — reporting a fraud, and who the service covers
- Police Scotland — contact us: non-emergencies on 101