'Energy company broke into my home'

A man has said he felt "violated" after an energy firm broke into his home to check whether his electricity meter had been tampered with.

Alan Knight, 67, from Waterlooville, Hampshire, was at work when E.On engineers executed a warrant on 31 October 2024.

In a private message to Mr Knight, the firm said its artificial intelligence (AI) software had detected that the smart meter cover might have been removed, although no issues were later found.

The firm admitted: "The AI technology needs further work to better its detection for future cases."

Mr Knight said: "I was livid that it happened to me... The implication was that I was stealing their gas and electric.

"It's almost like being burgled. I can understand people wanting to leave their house after being burgled.

"I'd like them to just apologise and say they messed it up."

The private text message from E.On, seen by the BBC, said: "The AI Technology notified us that the meter cover had been removed.

"This raised the concerns for us to check the meter for faults or tamper.

"Your meter readings are in line with your usage, these cause no concerns."

E.On said it had also capped the gas meter outside the house after detecting a leak.

However, Mr Knight said a gas engineer he brought in privately found no problems and restored the supply.

In a statement, the energy firm said it had tried to gain entry to the property by consent three times before obtaining a warrant.

It did not comment on the state of the internal electricity meter but said it was pleased that the gas meter outside had been declared safe.

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