How do you charge me before I have a smart meter installed?

Amber still passes through wholesale prices, with no retail markup, to customers who don't yet have a smart meter.

Because your meter can't be read remotely and can't track the times of day when you used power, we'll average the wholesale price in your region and pass on these prices with no mark up. The wholesale market operator uses this data to charge us wholesale rates for your power. This estimate is roughly accurate for most people. Your bill will still be based on your total kWh usage between readings.

If you want to understand what your rates will be like without a smart meter, check out our Pricing page and enter your postcode. The rates in your quote are a yearly average rate based on a typical customer's consumption - which is very similar to how your rates are calculated if you don't have a smart meter. You can view historical rates for each month of the year by clicking 'By Month' on the price chart.

If you get a smart meter installed, two things change - the first is that you'll be able to save beyond these typical rates by shifting some of your usage at cheaper and greener times. The second is that your rates will be based on the times when your household uses power, rather than when the typical household uses power. They'll become a bit more accurate.

Will I be billed monthly or quarterly?

Until you get a smart meter we can only bill you after a quarterly meter read. Your meter will also be read during your smart meter install. We find that most customers receive their first bill shortly after their smart meter is installed. Once you have a smart meter, you'll switch to a monthly billing cycle, as we can access your meter data remotely rather than relying on quarterly readings.

How solar FiT is determined before and after smart meter install

If you have had a solar reconfiguration (this is typically organised by your installer during solar installation) you will receive a wholesale solar FiT before you get a smart meter installed. We will look at the timing of the typical load profile in your area to determine what solar FiT you will be paid. 

You’ll still be credited on the basis of your exact amount of exports to the grid and it is just the timing of these exports that we need an approximation for.

Once you get a smart meter, you will receive a FiT based on the real-time FiT available at the time your energy exports entered the grid.

If you have not had a solar reconfiguration yet we will still need to organise this with your local network. 

The requirements differ by network and your installer will be best placed to advise on next steps. They typically get in touch with Amber to organise the reconfiguration after they’ve submitted relevant documentation to the network. Should you have further questions on this, please reach out to your installer, or contact us on info@amber.com.au. You can also have a read through this FAQ article.