Recharger Prepaid Meters
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LB
Leon B
1 reviews | Active since Member
11 Feb 2025, 18:48
Recharger Meters - An huge under recovery and expensive loss for landlords.
I purchased a Recharger Pre-Paid meter to manage the electricity consumption of our garden flat, used by tenants. The electricity is provided off a Tshwane Pre-Paid meter, working on a sliding scale. The use of the garden unit very quickly push the main unit to the top consumption level and the Recharger meters work on a flat rate, rather than a sliding scale. The request for an uplift of the charged rate to the Tshwane default rates needs to be proved after submission of statements, providing 6 months usage statement. So purchasing a Recharger meter and service will cause you financial loss. They pay long after the voucher were purchased, charge more than 7% service fees, plus a monthly service fee and under recover. As a landlord, you cannot afford to use this ridiculous inefficient service.
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Replies (53)Recharger Prepaid Meters's replyOfficial
17 Jul 2025, 10:21 Hi Leon,
Thank you for your detailed feedback regarding your experience with the Recharger Prepaid sub-metering solution. We sincerely regret your dissatisfaction and appreciate the opportunity to address the concerns raised. Please allow us to clarify how the system functions and why certain outcomes, such as under-recovery in some months and over-recovery in other months, may occur.
As previously advised, based on the vouchers your correspondence, your main municipal electricity meter is billed on an inclining block tariff structure. This means:
· Electricity is charged at a lower rate at the beginning of each month. · As additional electricity is purchased throughout the month, the rate increases in alignment with the consumption thresholds set by the municipality. · On the first day of each new month, the rate resets to the lowest tier, and the cycle begins again.
However, prepaid sub-meters such as the Recharger meter are not smart meters and therefore do not have the ability to detect or respond to the tariff block position of the main municipal meter.
As such, the sub-meter operates on a flat or average tariff rate throughout the month. This ensures consistency and simplicity in the vending process. While this fixed rate is intended to provide a fair monthly average:
· The landlord may recover slightly more at the start of the month (when the main meter is on a lower tariff). · The landlord may recover slightly less as consumption increases (when the main meter shifts into higher tariff blocks). · This balance is designed to normalize recoveries across the billing cycle. However, absolute parity with municipal block tariffs is not technically feasible with sub-metering.
Further to your comments regarding service fees, we would like to clarify the following:
The chain store service fee (usually 10%) is charged at the point of sale and is borne by the tenant, not the landlord. There is no deduction of the chain store fee from the amount reimbursed to the landlord.
As per our terms and conditions agreed upon at the time of registration, reimbursements are processed and paid to the nominated bank account at month-end, after reconciliation of all valid transactions.
We understand that managing electricity recovery in a sectional or shared supply arrangement can be complex. Our support team remains available to assist in adjusting the tariff rate applied to your sub-meter to ensure it remains as fair and reflective of your monthly usage trends as possible. In instances where long-term under-recovery is identified, a tariff rate review can be conducted upon submission of at least six months' municipal electricity statements.
We remain committed to supporting you in managing your energy recovery effectively and welcome the opportunity to work with you to optimize your experience with our service.
Should you require assistance with submitting your statements or initiating a tariff review, please don’t hesitate to contact our support team at admin@recharger.co.za
Thank you for your detailed feedback regarding your experience with the Recharger Prepaid sub-metering solution. We sincerely regret your dissatisfaction and appreciate the opportunity to address the concerns raised. Please allow us to clarify how the system functions and why certain outcomes, such as under-recovery in some months and over-recovery in other months, may occur.
As previously advised, based on the vouchers your correspondence, your main municipal electricity meter is billed on an inclining block tariff structure. This means:
· Electricity is charged at a lower rate at the beginning of each month. · As additional electricity is purchased throughout the month, the rate increases in alignment with the consumption thresholds set by the municipality. · On the first day of each new month, the rate resets to the lowest tier, and the cycle begins again.
However, prepaid sub-meters such as the Recharger meter are not smart meters and therefore do not have the ability to detect or respond to the tariff block position of the main municipal meter.
As such, the sub-meter operates on a flat or average tariff rate throughout the month. This ensures consistency and simplicity in the vending process. While this fixed rate is intended to provide a fair monthly average:
· The landlord may recover slightly more at the start of the month (when the main meter is on a lower tariff). · The landlord may recover slightly less as consumption increases (when the main meter shifts into higher tariff blocks). · This balance is designed to normalize recoveries across the billing cycle. However, absolute parity with municipal block tariffs is not technically feasible with sub-metering.
Further to your comments regarding service fees, we would like to clarify the following:
The chain store service fee (usually 10%) is charged at the point of sale and is borne by the tenant, not the landlord. There is no deduction of the chain store fee from the amount reimbursed to the landlord.
As per our terms and conditions agreed upon at the time of registration, reimbursements are processed and paid to the nominated bank account at month-end, after reconciliation of all valid transactions.
We understand that managing electricity recovery in a sectional or shared supply arrangement can be complex. Our support team remains available to assist in adjusting the tariff rate applied to your sub-meter to ensure it remains as fair and reflective of your monthly usage trends as possible. In instances where long-term under-recovery is identified, a tariff rate review can be conducted upon submission of at least six months' municipal electricity statements.
We remain committed to supporting you in managing your energy recovery effectively and welcome the opportunity to work with you to optimize your experience with our service.
Should you require assistance with submitting your statements or initiating a tariff review, please don’t hesitate to contact our support team at admin@recharger.co.za
Best regards,
Recharger Prepaid Meters's reply17 Jul 2025, 10:21
Official
Hi Leon,
Thank you for your detailed feedback regarding your experience with the Recharger Prepaid sub-metering solution. We sincerely regret your dissatisfaction and appreciate the opportunity to address the concerns raised. Please allow us to clarify how the system functions and why certain outcomes, such as under-recovery in some months and over-recovery in other months, may occur.
As previously advised, based on the vouchers your correspondence, your main municipal electricity meter is billed on an inclining block tariff structure. This means:
· Electricity is charged at a lower rate at the beginning of each month. · As additional electricity is purchased throughout the month, the rate increases in alignment with the consumption thresholds set by the municipality. · On the first day of each new month, the rate resets to the lowest tier, and the cycle begins again.
However, prepaid sub-meters such as the Recharger meter are not smart meters and therefore do not have the ability to detect or respond to the tariff block position of the main municipal meter.
As such, the sub-meter operates on a flat or average tariff rate throughout the month. This ensures consistency and simplicity in the vending process. While this fixed rate is intended to provide a fair monthly average:
· The landlord may recover slightly more at the start of the month (when the main meter is on a lower tariff). · The landlord may recover slightly less as consumption increases (when the main meter shifts into higher tariff blocks). · This balance is designed to normalize recoveries across the billing cycle. However, absolute parity with municipal block tariffs is not technically feasible with sub-metering.
Further to your comments regarding service fees, we would like to clarify the following:
The chain store service fee (usually 10%) is charged at the point of sale and is borne by the tenant, not the landlord. There is no deduction of the chain store fee from the amount reimbursed to the landlord.
As per our terms and conditions agreed upon at the time of registration, reimbursements are processed and paid to the nominated bank account at month-end, after reconciliation of all valid transactions.
We understand that managing electricity recovery in a sectional or shared supply arrangement can be complex. Our support team remains available to assist in adjusting the tariff rate applied to your sub-meter to ensure it remains as fair and reflective of your monthly usage trends as possible. In instances where long-term under-recovery is identified, a tariff rate review can be conducted upon submission of at least six months' municipal electricity statements.
We remain committed to supporting you in managing your energy recovery effectively and welcome the opportunity to work with you to optimize your experience with our service.
Should you require assistance with submitting your statements or initiating a tariff review, please don’t hesitate to contact our support team at admin@recharger.co.za
Thank you for your detailed feedback regarding your experience with the Recharger Prepaid sub-metering solution. We sincerely regret your dissatisfaction and appreciate the opportunity to address the concerns raised. Please allow us to clarify how the system functions and why certain outcomes, such as under-recovery in some months and over-recovery in other months, may occur.
As previously advised, based on the vouchers your correspondence, your main municipal electricity meter is billed on an inclining block tariff structure. This means:
· Electricity is charged at a lower rate at the beginning of each month. · As additional electricity is purchased throughout the month, the rate increases in alignment with the consumption thresholds set by the municipality. · On the first day of each new month, the rate resets to the lowest tier, and the cycle begins again.
However, prepaid sub-meters such as the Recharger meter are not smart meters and therefore do not have the ability to detect or respond to the tariff block position of the main municipal meter.
As such, the sub-meter operates on a flat or average tariff rate throughout the month. This ensures consistency and simplicity in the vending process. While this fixed rate is intended to provide a fair monthly average:
· The landlord may recover slightly more at the start of the month (when the main meter is on a lower tariff). · The landlord may recover slightly less as consumption increases (when the main meter shifts into higher tariff blocks). · This balance is designed to normalize recoveries across the billing cycle. However, absolute parity with municipal block tariffs is not technically feasible with sub-metering.
Further to your comments regarding service fees, we would like to clarify the following:
The chain store service fee (usually 10%) is charged at the point of sale and is borne by the tenant, not the landlord. There is no deduction of the chain store fee from the amount reimbursed to the landlord.
As per our terms and conditions agreed upon at the time of registration, reimbursements are processed and paid to the nominated bank account at month-end, after reconciliation of all valid transactions.
We understand that managing electricity recovery in a sectional or shared supply arrangement can be complex. Our support team remains available to assist in adjusting the tariff rate applied to your sub-meter to ensure it remains as fair and reflective of your monthly usage trends as possible. In instances where long-term under-recovery is identified, a tariff rate review can be conducted upon submission of at least six months' municipal electricity statements.
We remain committed to supporting you in managing your energy recovery effectively and welcome the opportunity to work with you to optimize your experience with our service.
Should you require assistance with submitting your statements or initiating a tariff review, please don’t hesitate to contact our support team at admin@recharger.co.za
Best regards,