With regard to Point 3, my understanding is that a smart meter cannot be made "dumb" in the commonly accepted sense of the word. It will always be in contact with the DCC (Data Communications Company) via the comms hub fitted to the electricity meter and will on a daily basis upload consumption data in the form of an XML file. This file is then made available for download at the request of the energy supplier who by default will use it to generate bills and provide usage data to the consumer via the energy supplier's web site. You may be able to persuade your energy supplier not to use the smart meter data to generate bills, but expect a lot of trouble and pain along the way! Daily connection of a smart meter to a DCC is required so as to ensure firmware updates are received and to provide the DNO with network status information.

So, the answer to the question is that the meter doesn't know to what use the data it sends to the DCC will be put. Hence, one can only establish whether or not the smart meter data is being used to generate bills by inspecting the bills themselves, obtaining specific confirmation from the energy supplier, or gleaning information from the energy supplier's web site.

With regard to Point 3, my understanding is that a smart meter cannot be made "dumb" in the commonly accepted sense of the word. It will always be in contact with the DCC (Data Communications Company) via the comms hub fitted to the electricity meter and will on a daily basis upload consumption data in the form of an XML file. This file is then made available for download at the request of the energy supplier who by default will use it to generate bills and provide usage data to the consumer via the energy supplier's web site. You may be able to persuade your energy supplier not to use the smart meter data to generate bills, but expect a lot of trouble and pain along the way! Daily connection of a smart meter to a DCC is required so as to ensure firmware updates are received and to provide the DNO with network status information.

So, the answer to the question is that the meter doesn't know to what use the data it sends to the DCC will be put. Hence, one can only establish whether or not the smart meter data is being used to generate bills by inspecting the bills themselves, obtaining specific confirmation from the energy supplier, or gleaning information from the energy supplier's web site.