The most common mistake when settling electricity consumption based on meter readings
The most common mistake is that the initial reading is not noted at the moment itself. Landlords often only check the meter reading when the guest departs, and try to figure out retrospectively what the reading was at arrival. This almost never works out precisely, and that small difference is exactly where disputes arise.
A meter reading is the figure that the electricity meter displays at a particular moment, comparable to the odometer of a car. To know how much a guest has consumed, you need two readings: one at arrival and one at departure. The difference between those two is the consumption. If you are missing the first reading, then no one can be certain where the meter started running.
Why this mistake occurs so often
With most landlords, forgetting the initial reading is not due to carelessness, but due to lack of time. On that day there is also cleaning to be done, keys to be handed over, and the meter cabinet is often in a cupboard or storage room that no one checks first. With the next guest, the meter reading from the previous departure is used as the new initial reading, but if that was also handled inaccurately back then, the mistake compounds itself over multiple bookings.
A second, less well-known variant of the same mistake is that landlords read the main meter instead of the one for the individual unit. In a property with multiple units, such as a holiday park or a building with two apartments, the main meter often also measures common lighting, a shared washing machine, or the neighbour's meter. Anyone unaware of this charges the guest for part of someone else's consumption, or conversely, too little.
What specifically goes wrong if you miss the initial reading
Suppose: a guest stays a week in your holiday home. Upon departure you read the meter: 4,238 kWh. You are no longer certain whether the reading at arrival was 4,180 or 4,205, because it was not recorded back then. The difference between those two possible outcomes is 25 kWh, soon amounting to tens of euros. With a one-off dispute that is inconvenient; with a rental business with multiple properties and many changing guests this becomes a recurring and time-consuming problem, and sometimes a reason why guests leave a negative review over something that actually had nothing to do with the property itself.
How you prevent this
The core of the solution is simple: record the initial reading at the moment of arrival, not after. A photo of the meter with a visible date, or a note in your booking system, is already sufficient to prevent dispute. For landlords working with multiple properties or units, it is wise to determine in advance which meter belongs to which unit, so that you do not accidentally charge a shared meter to one guest.
Those who prefer not to have to read the meter manually anymore can also have the consumption measured and automatically tracked from the moment the guest logs in themselves or scans a QR-code. In how the measurement and settlement are structured exactly you can read how that process works without manual reading, and why the starting and ending point of consumption is then automatically established.
For those who want to know the technical details
With a separate sub-meter, the consumption of the connected circuits is measured only, separate from the main meter of the property. That is the meter that registers the consumption of the holiday home itself, independent of common lighting or shared installations. A sub-meter typically displays the reading in kWh with three decimal places, and some models also record the time of last consumption, which is useful in case of a dispute. An electrician can indicate whether your meter cabinet already has a sub-meter, or whether only a main meter is present.
Which settlement method prevents this mistake structurally
Manual meter reading-based billing remains error-prone, simply because it is human work. Landlords who frequently encounter such disputes therefore sometimes opt for an alternative billing method, for example a fixed amount per stay or a system where the guest purchases kWh in advance and consumption is tracked live. Which method works best for your situation depends on the type of accommodation and how much guest turnover you have. With a few short questions you can see which billing method suits your situation.
If you are unsure whether your current method of keeping meter readings is sufficiently reliable, you will find in the knowledge base worked out per situation how other landlords with similar properties have handled this, including the differences between a main meter and a submeter.
Would you like to see in a few minutes whether your own billing method poses a risk of disputes with guests? Do the free quick-scan or browse through the other topics in the knowledge base; both can be consulted without an account.