Consumer's Safety Concerns when Using Smart Meters - Dissertation Example

Smart meters have been the focus of attention of a considerable number of electricity providers in the European Union as well as the United Kingdom. A number of smart meters projects are underway in Italy, Japan, Sweden, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, the USA, and Northern Ireland (Gerwen, 2006). This unwavering attention given to these smart meters is because of the benefits that the ‘smart’ technology offers. Not only are these new smart grid/meters designed to be more reliable and more efficient but they also give more accurate readings than the existing electrical meters.

Smart meters facilitate the operations of meter companies, grid operators, energy suppliers, governments, and consumers (Gerwen, 2006).Despite the large-scale advantages offered by the smart meters, there are primarily two issues regarding the effect of these smart meters on consumer welfare. These two issues alone have created a wave of concern amongst the consumers regarding the usage of smart meters. Owing to some of the reviews published by the environmental and health bodies, the use of smart meters can produce harmful health effects and disrupt the privacy of consumers (Murrill et al.

, 2012; Dean & Rea, 2012; Sage, 2011). Additionally, owing to the fact that in a few countries, the installation of these smart meters has been made mandatory by the government, the consumers feel targeted and vulnerable. Consumers have become concerned about the maintenance of their privacy and health as these smart meters have been implemented inside of their homes. The consumers want to get a clearer picture of how these meters operate and what their functionalities are. The consumers want to be convinced that these meters will not be harmful to their health and shall be used only for extracting electricity usage details without trampling over privacy.