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Guru
United Kingdom - Member - Indeterminate Engineering Fields - Control Engineering - New Member

Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: In the bothy, 7 chains down the line from Dodman's Lane level crossing. Kettle's on.
Posts: 19868
Good Answers: 482

Disjointed Electricity Supply Industry in the UK

06/25/2012 6:00 AM

<rantmode>

  • MiL's electricity meter is mounted in a weatherproof box on the outside of her property underneath the kitchen window. The meter was read on 12th June and the individual reading the meter failed to secure the door catch properly.
  • MiL (78 years young and with both eyesight and dexterity issues) secures door as best she can using sticky tape, not having a copy of the triangular socket key needed to operate the door catch. Door remains partly open to the elements.
  • Inclement weather begats rainwater ingress to the weatherproof box. The main supply fuse holder is mounted in the bottom of the box on a piece of chipboard. Rainwater penetrates chipboard, which is now sodden and offering a potential fault path between live and neutral upstream of MiL's main supply fuse that has the potential to take out the supply to 1/3 of the street.
  • 24rd June (Sunday): PWSlack notices the sodden chipboard inside the box, removes the tape and secures the door catch using makeshift tools to prevent further water ingress and limit the damage should a fault erupt. Telephones contracted electricity supplier (name withheld) to report it. Receives message to phone back during office hours.
  • 25th June: PWSlack telephones MiL's supplier to report safety concern and request safety inspection, asking for commitment as to date of inspection. Supplier declines to offer inspection, referring caller to distribution network for attention, claiming that they are "unable to report safety defects" and recommending two other telephone numbers instead [Thinks: been here before on another matter at the Bothy; same supplier].
  • PWSlack telephones distribution network company (name withheld), who asks why the matter wasn't reported to the supply company instead. PWSlack affirms that it was and relates supply company's disinterest in the matter at the earlier call. All the supply company seems to want do is meter supplies and collect monies due.

And this is the way that electricity supply takes place in a modern electricity supply industry? Whatever happened to good-old-fashioned due diligence, and Customer Service at the first call?

</rantmode>

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Guru

Join Date: Apr 2011
Posts: 1850
Good Answers: 64
#1

Re: Disjointed electricity supply industry in the UK

06/25/2012 6:45 AM

'....Whatever happened to good-old-fashioned due diligence, and Customer Service at the first call?....'

Not my field of expertise, but I half remember overhearing something about the mutual incompatibility: of values and ideals required to grossly over-invest in something as unreliable as wind derived electricity for base loads with: value and ideals that include aspirations toward prudent due diligence and exceptional customer service.

I don't think those two paradigms can be contained in a stable entity.

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Guru
United Kingdom - Member - Indeterminate Engineering Fields - Control Engineering - New Member

Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: In the bothy, 7 chains down the line from Dodman's Lane level crossing. Kettle's on.
Posts: 19868
Good Answers: 482
#2

Re: Disjointed electricity supply industry in the UK

06/25/2012 6:57 AM

Update:

<praisemode>

Technician has visited same day and made the installation safe.

</praisemode>

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Guru
Hobbies - DIY Welding - New Member, but planning to be an Old Member Popular Science - Weaponology - New Member

Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Fargo, America, USA
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#4
In reply to #2

Re: Disjointed electricity supply industry in the UK

06/25/2012 2:16 PM

Customer service is not necessarily disjointed in UK, but the diligence has become the customer burden.

Well, it's nice to know that when you find the right phone extension, emphasis is placed on an urgent service call.

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Guru

Join Date: Apr 2011
Posts: 1850
Good Answers: 64
#5
In reply to #4

Re: Disjointed electricity supply industry in the UK

06/25/2012 2:37 PM

....or someone at the Electric Co. happens to frequent CR4.....

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Active Contributor

Join Date: May 2012
Location: NE Indiana
Posts: 15
#3

Re: Disjointed Electricity Supply Industry in the UK

06/25/2012 9:00 AM

As a matter of contrast, even in "Fly-over" country, rural USA where I live, utility companies have meters that can be read via transmitter. The meter reader just drives by the house with their little receiver unit. Guess they have issues with my dog chasing them off the property

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Users who posted comments:

Bevelgearpro (1); Doorman (1); PWSlack (1); truth is not a compromise (2)

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