Smart Meter Refusals Hit 17,000 in New Brunswick
Resistance to N.B. Power’s smart meter rollout has grown sharply, with an estimated 17,000 households now refusing installation — a tenfold jump from what the utility reported to MLAs just a year ago.
But the power company insists the rise in refusals is not the reason it’s revising how it handles opt-outs — including a plan to triple the monthly fee for customers who stick with traditional meters.
“N.B. Power is not penalizing customers,” the utility said in a statement, defending the proposed changes as a fairness measure to cover the cost of manual readings.
New Fee for Non-Smart Meters
In documents filed with the New Brunswick Energy and Utilities Board (EUB), N.B. Power proposed charging $4.65 per month starting next April for customers who refuse smart meters.
That’s nearly three times higher than the $1.55 monthly fee the utility had forecast when the project was first approved in 2020.
The new plan would require six manual meter readings a year, instead of two, which the utility says will provide more accurate billing and “a better customer experience.”
“Boosting the actual reads on an annual basis will improve service,” said spokesperson Elizabeth Fraser, noting that it will also reduce large adjustments when estimated bills are off.
Still, many residents see the change as unfair.
Clarence Maillet, a Moncton homeowner who refused the installation, said he shouldn’t have to pay extra.
“I don’t agree with them charging at all,” he said. “It’s five bucks here, 10 bucks there — it adds up.”
Why Smart Meters?
N.B. Power is nearing completion of its 388,000-meter installation program, which aims to modernize the grid and enable real-time data collection.
The new meters can help pinpoint outages instantly, track individual energy use, and eventually support time-of-day pricing models that offer cheaper electricity during off-peak hours.
But critics have raised concerns about privacy, health effects, and data accuracy, fueling public hesitation.
Refusal Rate Soars
When the rollout began, N.B. Power President Lori Clark told legislators that fewer than 200 customers — just 0.45% of the first 40,000 installations — had refused.
Now, with 17,000 refusals and about 50,000 installations still pending, that rate has multiplied several times over.
Phil Landry, who oversees the smart meter program, said the utility expects opposition to soften once the rollout concludes.
“Once all the meters are installed, we’ll go back and do a campaign with those who opted out to ensure all of their questions are answered,” Landry said.
Other Provinces Take Different Approaches
In Quebec, Hydro-Québec allows customers without smart meters to self-report readings monthly, with only one annual verification visit by the utility — a model that helps keep costs lower.
By contrast, N.B. Power insists more frequent manual readings will improve accuracy, even if it costs more.
The company maintains that its proposal is about service quality, not penalties. But for thousands of New Brunswickers skeptical of smart meters, the new charges are unlikely to make the technology any easier to accept.