Smart energy 2.0: Moving from mandates to meaningful insights

• 4 days ago (2026-04-15)
• Junior Isles

Smart meters 2

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Kyle Brown, CCO at Chameleon Technology

In March, the UK government published its outcome to a consultation on its Smart Metering Policy Framework , which sets out the next phase of smart meter obligations from now through to 2030. We were invited to participate in the consultation before the end of last year – marking the completion of the first phase of the UK’s smart meter installation targets.

The rollout has not been without its challenges, but Great Britain’s smart energy infrastructure is now taking real shape. As of the end of September 2025, there were over 40 million smart or advanced meters in homes and small businesses, and 70% of all meters are now smart devices.

But something is hindering the smart meter rollout from reaching its full potential, and it’s not only connection issues and hard-to-reach homes. The technical requirements originally set out in the mandate for the rollout were decided long before current smart capabilities were possible – and it’s holding back the potential of more efficient energy usage.

While focus rightly remains on making sure that smart meters are properly connected and that suppliers are continuing to push forward with installation targets, as the next phase begins the technical limitations of the original mandate should be reconsidered.

A gap between policy and expectations

The current policy architecture reflects an ambition to meet installation and replacement volume – but it’s prioritised over data usefulness and connectivity. The smart meter network needs consumer buy-in by necessity; it’s only through shifting consumer behaviours, encouraging them to use energy at different times to save energy and money, that a fully electrified grid will work.

But using specifications defined years ago is effectively freezing innovation at a point that no longer reflects what’s technically possible or commercially expected. Simply rolling out meters doesn’t align with how the sector and consumer expectations have evolved.

There is now a clear consumer appetite for real-time visibility of household data. People are used to this visibility in areas like banking and travel on smartphone apps, accessing personalised data, predictive insights and cross-device access. The energy sector should also be aiming to meet this expectation, to take full advantage of how this has become a consumer norm. Instead engagement is framed as a hardware challenge, when it’s increasingly a software and experience problem. There is a growing mismatch between what households expect and what their smart meters deliver.

If consumers can actively see where they’re using energy in real time and across various areas, from heating, lighting and gas to EV chargers and solar panels, they can target specific behaviour changes to make, instead of responding to a singular energy number. Interoperability should therefore form a central part of the policy. Open, flexible data is what enables better innovation and lower bills. Smart devices that connect them to the information they need should be the norm, not the exception.

Mandating the latest smart meter capabilities

Newer tools like Consumer Access Device (CAD)-enabled IHDs and apps with broader meter compatibility can help homes truly understand their energy usage, cut bills and encourage behavioural change. As the rollout enters its next phase through to 2030, mandating integrated Wi-Fi and app-based compatibility as standard would help to bridge the gap between the smart meter under the stairs and the smartphone in consumers' hands.

There is also a missed opportunity to link smart meter data with wider net zero goals in a meaningful and impactful way. Smart meters are critical components for demand flexibility and decarbonisation, with data insights helping households to shift their energy usage, integrate EVs or optimise heat pumps. Yet the technical requirements in the mandate currently fall short of maximising the versatility of smart meters needed for this. For example, the value of IHDs is still in discussion in the framework, but these devices have already evolved hugely – namely in the form of CAD- and WiFi-enabled IHDs – to help consumers take full advantage of smarter tariffs and low-carbon tech.

A major chance to transform energy use

There’s no doubt the rollout of smart meters is a key part of the UK’s mission to build an adaptable and decarbonised energy system. But the base layer of mandate expectations in the policy framework have already fallen behind technology. Mandates should evolve alongside innovation, otherwise we’re being tethered to the past unwillingly.

With 20% of households left to go – and the Government’s ambitious goals for newbuild homes – it’s anticipated that there will be one million new smart meters needed each year.

If this strong operational focus can be joined with a capability-focused one, then the UK government has a real chance to empower consumers with smarter insights and transform the energy habits and efficiency of households across the country.