Christina Milligan said she felt “aggressively” pressured by her energy supplier, who warned that her Radio Teleswitch Service (RTS) meter would stop working after June 30.

The 69-year-old from Wishaw said she felt trapped by the need to comply with the upgrade and that her kitchen had been “demolished” to make way for the new meter.

She spoke out after Advice Direct Scotland launched a campaign raising awareness of the RTS switch-off deadline.

The charity, which runs the national energy advice service energyadvice.scot, is urging those affected to check their meters and contact their suppliers as soon as possible, rather than wait to be notified. It has also launched a countdown clock on its website.

Christina, a retired headteacher, said: “My kitchen was in place since 1989 and now it has been demolished. When they said I needed to replace my electricity meter, I did not expect to remove my kitchen cupboards. The whole way it has been handled is a shambles.”

She has since been offered £100 from her supplier after repeatedly complaining about the cost of the kitchen repairs.
 
Thousands of people in Scotland still rely on RTS meters and could be left without heating or hot water this summer if they are not replaced before June 30.

According to the latest figures from the UK Government, around 139,000 RTS meters remained in Scotland as of March 7, of which 47,277 are in the Highlands and Islands.
Introduced in the 1980s, RTS meters use longwave radio signals from outdated transmitters to switch between peak and off-peak rates. If not replaced by June 30, customers risk being stuck on the wrong setting or moved onto a more expensive single-rate tariff.

With the deadline fast approaching, Advice Direct Scotland has seen a rise in calls from worried households and is urging people not to delay. Energy suppliers should already have contacted affected customers to arrange a replacement.

Regulator Ofgem is pushing firms to complete the switchover on time, but earlier this week UK energy minister Miatta Fahnbulleh described current progress as “not acceptable”.

Anyone who has not received a letter or email should contact their supplier now. Those needing support can call energyadvice.scot on 0808 196 8660.
 
Christina added: “I have been haggling with customer services to get this done. Someone came out to look at my meter and said they could not get into it as it is in a kitchen cupboard.

“Eventually, they told me there was no choice but to demolish my cupboards at my own cost. The total cost was £700 to get it sorted. I was appalled at how complex it was.
“I had arranged to do it but at one point, they cancelled it and gave no reason.

“They have taken no account of people’s ability to pay for the remedial work. They do not care at all. There are ways to deal with it rather than issuing these aggressively worded statements.”
 
Andrew Bartlett, chief executive of Advice Direct Scotland, commented: “Christina’s experience shows the disruption households can face when meters are hard to access. While the meters themselves should be upgraded for free, there can be additional costs.

“That’s why it’s so important to take action before the deadline. With the June switchover deadline getting closer, we’re seeing more enquiries and expect that number to grow.

“If you have an RTS meter, it could stop working properly once the signal is turned off, meaning your heating and hot water might not work at the right times or you could be billed incorrectly. You might also have fewer tariff options available.

“Replacing your RTS meter now can help avoid these problems. Suppliers should be contacting customers, but you can also get in touch with them directly. If you know someone with an RTS meter, particularly someone vulnerable, encourage them to make the switch soon.”