Old meter removal and final reading during a smart meter rollout

Two things leave the premises with the old meter

Every replacement creates two loose ends. One is the final reading, which billing needs to close the old meter. The other is the meter itself, which is utility property and has to end up somewhere known.

Get either wrong and someone has to sort it out later. A missing final reading turns into a disputed bill. A missing meter turns into a stock discrepancy, or worse.

The final reading

The final reading is the last number the old meter shows before it comes off the wall. The consumer's last bill on that meter is calculated up to it.

1. Photograph the display before touching anything. The photo is the reading. Make sure the digits are sharp and the serial is visible in the same frame, or in a second photo taken straight after.
2. Type the reading into the job as well. The photo is the proof; the typed number is what billing will use. Having both lets a supervisor check one against the other.
3. Note the register if there is more than one. Some meters show several readings. Record the one your DISCOM bills on, and photograph the others if asked.
4. If the display is dead or unreadable, say so. Record it as unreadable with a photo. Don't guess, and don't leave the field empty. A blank looks like a mistake; "display blank" with a photo is an answer.
5. Tell the consumer the reading. It saves a phone call to the DISCOM later.

The old meter itself

1. Scan or photograph the old serial. It is the only thing that links the physical meter in the store to the job record.
2. Keep the meter with the job. Tag or mark it so it can't be confused with the next one in the van.
3. Return it to stores against the crew's name. Count meters out at the start of the day and back in at the end, the same way you count new meters and seals.
4. Record anything odd. A burnt meter, a broken seal or signs of tampering on the old meter should be photographed and noted before it is removed.

Why the paperwork on old meters matters

Old meters are easy to treat as scrap. They aren't always. Chhattisgarh's regulator took up a case after media reports in December 2024 raised concerns that functional meters were being dumped as scrap, potentially causing losses of more than ₹60 crore, as SolarQuarter reported in February 2026.

The utility had a grading scheme: single-phase meters still under warranty, with normal reading codes and a working display, were graded good; those past warranty were declared scrap; working three-phase meters were kept for reuse. The Commission accepted that grading. What it criticised was the lack of coordination between departments: conventional meters were still arriving on older orders while smart meter contracts were being finalised. It called this a management lapse, and closed the matter on 20 February 2026 with a direction to improve coordination.

The lesson for field teams is simple. The store can only grade, reuse or auction what it can identify. A returned meter with a serial, a final reading and a condition note can be graded. A sack of unlabelled meters can't.

Put it in the form

The surest way to get this right on thousands of jobs is to make it part of the installation form, so a job can't be submitted without it:

• old meter serial (scanned or photographed)
• final reading, typed and photographed
• old meter condition (working, display blank, burnt, damaged, tampered)
• a photo of the old meter before removal

How PIEBENCH helps

In PIEBENCH, these are fields in the meter installation workflow, and any of them can be made required. Scout captures the photos and scanned serials offline, and supervisors review each job, photos included, in the approval queue before it is reported. See the smart meter installation SOP and the smart meter installation app.