Smart meters have been rolling out across the UK for over a decade, but the picture in social
housing is more complicated than in owner-occupied homes. Tenancies change, properties sit void, prepayment is common, and meter estates are often a patchwork of old and new technology. If you manage void energy, understanding what SMET2 meters are — and what they change — is increasingly part of the job.
This guide explains what SMET2 means, why the distinction from earlier smart meters matters,
and what it means specifically for void properties in social housing.
What SMET2 actually means
SMETS stands for Smart Metering Equipment Technical Specifications. There are two
generations: SMETS1 (the first wave of smart meters) and SMETS2 (the current standard,
usually written SMET2). The difference is not cosmetic — it goes to the heart of how the meter
communicates.
SMETS1 meters were installed by individual suppliers and connected through that supplier’sown systems. The well-known problem: when a customer switched supplier, the meter often ‘went dumb’ — it lost its smart functionality and reverted to behaving like a traditional meter, needing manual readings again.
SMET2 meters solve this by connecting to a single national network operated by the Data Communications Company (DCC), which every supplier plugs into. The meter stays smart regardless of who supplies the energy. For a sector like social housing, where the ‘customer’ on a void property is effectively whoever the landlord arranges supply with, this interoperability matters enormously.
Why this matters for void properties
In a void property, the energy account is a moving target. The previous tenant’s account closes, the supply transfers to the landlord for the void period, and then a new tenant takes it on. With a SMETS1 meter, each of those transitions risked the meter losing functionality. With SMET2, the meter keeps working through every change of responsibility.
There are three practical benefits for voids specifically:
• Accurate readings without a site visit. A SMET2 meter can provide readings remotely, so
closing the previous account and opening the void account doesn’t require someone to
physically attend and read the meter. That removes a common cause of estimated bills
and disputes.
• Easier switching between credit and prepayment. SMET2 meters can be switched
between credit and prepayment modes remotely, without changing the physical meter.
For a void property, that flexibility means the supply can be configured for whatever the
next tenancy needs without an engineer visit.
• Cleaner handover data. Because the meter reports actual consumption, the void-period
energy use is recorded accurately — which makes the final void bill defensible and the
new tenant’s opening position clear.
The prepayment dimension
Prepayment meters are far more common in social housing than in the wider population, and
they’re one of the biggest sources of friction in voids. Traditional prepayment meters need a
physical key or card, which needs topping up at a shop, and which can carry debt from a
previous tenant that blocks the supply entirely.
SMET2 meters in prepayment mode remove most of that friction. Top-ups can be made
remotely or through an app rather than a shop visit, the meter can be switched out of
prepayment mode without a physical swap, and the whole arrangement is visible and
manageable without anyone attending the property. For landlords with large prepayment
estates, migrating voids to SMET2 is one of the highest-impact things you can do to reduce no-
power delays.
The migration path — and the realistic timeline
You can’t switch a whole estate to SMET2 overnight, and you don’t need to. The practical
approach is to migrate opportunistically: every time a property goes void is a natural moment to
install or upgrade to a SMET2 meter, because the property is empty, accessible via key safe,
and between tenancies.
Over time, this turns the void process itself into the migration engine. Rather than running a
separate, expensive estate-wide meter replacement programme, you upgrade meters as
properties cycle through voids — spreading the cost and the disruption, and steadily improving
the quality of your meter estate.
Installation into a void doesn’t require a tenant to be present or to coordinate access, which
makes it considerably simpler than upgrading an occupied home. With key-safe access, the
supplier’s engineer can attend, install, and confirm the meter is live and reporting, all without
any input from your team beyond the initial instruction.
What to watch for
A few practical cautions are worth knowing:
• Signal coverage. SMET2 meters communicate over the DCC network, which uses
different technology in the north and south of the UK. Coverage is good and improving,
but a small number of properties — particularly in rural areas or with meters in
basements or behind thick walls — can have connectivity issues. These are the
exception, not the rule.
• Not all installs are equal. A SMET2 meter installed but not correctly commissioned can
sit in a ‘dumb’ state. It’s worth confirming each install is actually reporting, not just
physically fitted.
• Mixed estates need tracking. During the years of migration, you’ll have a mix of
traditional, SMETS1 and SMET2 meters. Knowing which property has which is part of
good asset intelligence — and saves a lot of guesswork later.
The bottom line
SMET2 smart meters genuinely make void energy easier: remote readings, remote mode-switching, no more shop trips for prepayment, and meters that stay smart through every change of tenancy. For social landlords, the smart move is to use the void cycle itself as the migration path — upgrading meters property by property as they fall empty, until the estate is steadily modernised without a disruptive programme.
Every void is a natural moment to upgrade the meter — the property’s empty, accessible, and between tenancies. Over time, the void process becomes the migration engine.
TSM manages smart meter installation into void properties as part of our void energy service. If
you’d like to understand how it could work for your portfolio, request a callback.