An electricity meter is like a speedometer on your car by measuring the amount of gas that you use. The readings taken from your meter are used to calculate the bills you receive from your energy supplier.
Who reads my electricity meter?
Gas Networks Ireland (GNI) are responsible for installing and maintaining your gas meter. GNI will try to read your meter four times per year. These meter readings are passed on to your supplier, who will calculate how much electricity you have used and issue a bill.
What if Gas Networks Ireland can’t read my meter?
For many properties, the gas meter will be located outside which means GNI should usually have access and be able to read the meter. But there may be times when they cannot gain access to take a meter reading. This could happen if the gates are locked, something is blocking the meter or if the meter is inside and you are not at home to let them in.
When the meter reader cannot get access to the meter they will leave a card in the postbox to let you know that they were there and to tell you how you can submit your own read. If you do not submit a meter reading, then an estimated read will be used. By submitting your own reads it will help to ensure that you get accurate bills.
It will be clearly marked on your bill whether the read used was an actual read, an estimated read or a read supplied by the customer. The markings used are as follows:
A – means an actual meter read by GNI
C – means a read submitted by you, the customer
E – means your bill has been calculated using an estimated meter reading
Estimated bills – what should I do?
If the odd bill is based on an estimate, it isn’t really an issue to worry about. However, if there are a number of estimated bills in a row, the estimated readings might not reflect the an accurate, correct reading. This can result in a large bill for customers when an actual read is taken, so it is very important to check your bills to make sure you are not always getting estimated bills.
If you receive a bill which has been estimated, you should check your meter to see if there is a significant difference between the estimate and what is shown by the meter. If there is a difference you can submit your own meter read and there is information below about how to do this.
By submitting your own read, you can be sure you are being billed accurately and that there are no surprise “catch-up” bills. This means that it’s important to be familiar with your meter and how to submit readings to your supplier or GNI.
What type of gas meter do I have?
In Ireland, there are two main types of gas meters in use and below is some information on each
- Digital Meter
- Dial (Clock) Meter
Digital meter
If you have a digital meter where you can directly read the numbers (digits) like in the diagram below, read all the figures as displayed on your meter from left to right (including zero’s if displayed) and ignoring any digits in red or in a red box (or on some meters to the right of a comma).
Dial (clock) meter
If you have a dial (clock) meter it will display a series of dials, like the diagram below. The four small dials at the bottom should be read from left to right.
- The position of the pointer on the dial indicates what the reading should be.
- If the pointer is between two figures, use the lower figure, e.g. if it is between 7 and 8, use 7. However, if the pointer is between 9 and 0, use 9.
How to Submit An Gas Meter Read
You can submit a gas meter read to Gas Networks Ireland or to your supplier.
If you wish to submit your reading to Gas Networks Ireland all you need is your Gas Point Registration Number (GPRN) and your meter reading. There are a couple of ways, which are listed below:
- Phone: 1850 427 732 (or + 353 1 258 0426 from outside Ireland).
- Online: You can submit a reading via the GNI website (www.gasnetworks.ie)
If you wish to submit your reading to your supplier all you need is your Gas Point Reference Number (GPRN) and your meter reading. Suppliers have a number of ways to submit a reading including, for example online, by phone or app.
Your Gas Point Reference Number (GPRN) is the unique 7 digit number assigned to your gas connection and meter. It is always shown on the bill from your gas supplier.
Time to Switch
If you haven’t switched energy suppliers within the last 12 months, then it’s likely you will save money by moving to a new deal. To get the most accurate comparison it’s always best to use how much energy (kWh).
Now that you know how to read your meter, you can use your gas consumption to compare offers from electricity suppliers across Ireland to find out how much you could save by switching.
