From EV Charging to Smart Metering: How Guest Energy Expectations Are Changing

The way guests and customers use energy on holiday parks, residential parks and campsites is changing.

Electric vehicle charging is one of the clearest examples. Rolec reports that 90% of EV drivers prefer destinations with chargepoints, highlighting how access to energy-related facilities can increasingly influence where people choose to stay. Read Rolec’s Electrifying the Staycation article.

Some sites have already installed dedicated EV chargepoints, giving them an additional facility that can enhance the customer experience and help differentiate their destination.

However, EV charging is only one part of a much wider shift.Guests and residents are using more electrical devices and higher-powered appliances, while also expecting greater convenience, visibility and control over the services they pay for. For site operators, this makes fair and transparent utility management increasingly important.

Energy Is Becoming Part of the Customer Experience

Wi-Fi, online booking and digital payments were once considered optional extras. Today, customers often expect them as standard.

Energy services are following a similar path.

Guests and residents increasingly want to know what utilities are available, what is included in their charges and how much they are using. They are also becoming more familiar with digital tools that let them view consumption, make payments and manage accounts themselves.

For sites that have introduced EV charging, the facility can provide a convenient service for a growing group of customers.

For sites that have not, it becomes even more important to ensure that the electricity supplied to pitches, holiday homes, park homes and accommodation is being managed accurately and fairly.

Without proper metering and visibility, operators may find it difficult to distinguish between normal site electricity consumption and unusually high usage.

Electricity Consumption Is No Longer Predictable

Two customers occupying similar units can use very different amounts of electricity.

One may use little more than lighting, cooking equipment and a television. Another may operate electric heating, cooling equipment, additional appliances and several connected devices.

On holiday parks and campsites, guests may also arrive with equipment that was far less common when the site’s electrical infrastructure was originally installed.

For residential and holiday home parks, differences in appliance use and heating requirements can create equally significant variations.

Flat-rate charging may appear straightforward, but it does not account for these differences. Lower-usage customers can end up subsidising those who consume considerably more, while operators may struggle to recover the full cost of the electricity supplied.

As energy use becomes more varied, charging every customer the same amount can become less fair for everyone involved.

Why Transparency Matters

Utility charges can be a sensitive subject, particularly when customers do not understand how they have been calculated.

Manual readings, estimated bills and blanket charges can lead to questions such as:

• How much electricity have I actually used?

• What is included in my pitch fee or service charge?

• Why is my bill different from what I expected?

• Am I paying for my own consumption or contributing towards somebody else’s?

• How can I add credit to my account?

When operators cannot answer these questions with clear and accurate information, it can undermine trust and create additional work for site teams.

Smart metering provides a more transparent approach by recording actual consumption and making the information available to both the operator and the customer.

Instead of relying on estimates or assumptions, sites can establish a utility model based on accurate usage data.

Creating a Fairer Approach to Electricity

There is no single utility charging model that will suit every holiday park, residential park or campsite.

Some sites may choose a pay-as-you-go approach, where customers add credit to their account and pay for the electricity they consume.

Others may include a reasonable amount of energy within the pitch, rental or service charge, using a fair usage allowance to manage consumption above that level.

Residential and holiday home parks may use meter readings to calculate individual electricity charges based on actual usage.

The important point is that customers can clearly understand the arrangement and see how their charges relate to their consumption.

With Metpow, operators can introduce a utility model that fits the way their site works while giving customers greater visibility and control.

Customers can view how much energy they are using and what it is costing in real time. Depending on the site’s chosen model, they can also top up their own account without needing to contact reception or wait for a member of staff.

This creates a more convenient experience while reducing the likelihood of unexpected charges and disputes.

More Control for Site Operators

Changing customer expectations are only one side of the challenge.

Operators are also facing rising utility costs, ageing infrastructure and greater pressure to manage their sites efficiently.

Many parks still rely on staff to visit individual pitches, units or park homes to collect meter readings. The information may then need to be entered into spreadsheets, matched to customer records and used to calculate charges manually.

This process can be time-consuming and prone to mistakes, particularly across large or multi-site operations.

Metpow replaces manual processes with remote, automated meter readings and real-time utility data.

Through one cloud-based platform, operators can:

• Monitor electricity, water and gas consumption

• View readings remotely

• Manage individual pitches, units or supplies

• Identify unusual or unexpectedly high usage

• Introduce pay-as-you-go or fair usage models

• Give customers access to their own usage information

• Enable customers to top up their accounts

• Monitor multiple sites from one platform

• Recover utility costs more accurately

This gives operators greater control while reducing the administrative burden on their teams.

Understanding Demand Before It Becomes a Problem

Greater visibility can also help sites prepare for changing energy demand.

As guests and residents use more electrical equipment, operators need to understand how that behaviour is affecting the site.

Overall supplier bills can show that electricity costs have increased, but they do not necessarily explain where the additional consumption is coming from.

Smart metering provides more detailed data, helping operators understand usage across different areas, pitches or properties.

This insight can support decisions about infrastructure improvements, supply capacity, maintenance and future investment. It can also help identify faults or abnormal consumption before they result in a much larger bill.

Whether a site is adding new facilities, developing additional pitches or simply trying to manage existing consumption more effectively, accurate data creates a stronger basis for decision-making.

Preparing for the Next Generation of Customers

EV charging is a visible sign of how quickly customer expectations can evolve.

Some sites will decide that dedicated chargepoints are an important part of their future plans. Others may prioritise different facilities or face practical constraints that mean EV charging is not yet suitable.

In either case, operators still need to address the wider change in how customers use and think about energy.

Customers want convenience, clarity and confidence that they are being charged fairly. Operators need accurate information, stronger cost control and systems that do not depend on repetitive manual administration.

Smart metering helps bring those needs together.

By giving customers visibility of their consumption and allowing them to manage or top up their own accounts, sites can create a more transparent utility experience.

At the same time, operators gain the data and control needed to manage electricity, water and gas more accurately as customer expectations and consumption continue to evolve.

Make Your Utility Management Fairer and More Transparent

Metpow helps holiday parks, residential parks and campsites take control of their site utilities, reduce operational hassle and recover electricity, water and gas costs more accurately through automated smart metering and self-service payments.

Speak to the Metpow team about creating a fairer and more transparent approach to utility management.