No one home

Project status

In Progress

Aim

This project aims to improve monitoring of vacant properties by reviewing existing and emerging methods and technologies to enable better management of vacant properties; to swiftly identify owners/occupiers; accuracy of data entered into the market and to open accounts to the correct customer; mitigate the cost of trace work and bad debt; reduce leakage and eligibility of properties in the market.

Project updates

Date	Update
30 Septmber 2025	Occutrace have completed the installation phase of the project. Findings below: Of the 181 visits where an outcome was able to be recorded: - 34 sites had limpets successfully installed for ongoing monitoring - 59 sites could not have Limpets installed due to access or asset issues - 88 sites were found to be occupied and therefore not eligible for limpet installation as part of this project The main premises-related challenges in Project No One Home were: - Poor or outdated address data: difficult to recognise or locate sites in their current form, especially for properties vacant since market opening. - Change of use: many previously non-household sites had been converted to domestic use, making them ineligible. - Demolished or redeveloped sites: some locations had been completely removed or were now building sites. - Unreliable occupancy status: properties showing signs of intermittent use, faulty meters giving false readings, or recent occupancies not yet updated in market records. - Landlord or owner unresponsiveness: difficulty gaining entry to long-term vacant sites when landlords were untraceable or uncooperative. - Wholesaler approval delays: site visits couldn’t proceed without prior wholesaler approval, adding an administrative barrier to accessing premises. Next steps: monitor the flow at the 34 vacant premises using the installed loggers and report findings. This phase will last two months. The final report is expected in December 2026.
12 August 2025	With only 27 devices successfully installed, MOSL is concerned that progress has stalled. MOSL will hold a call with Occutrace on 8 September to review the results of the August activity. At this point, Occutrace would have visited 90 premises and, ideally, would have installed at least another 73 devices. The project milestones require 100 devices to be installed in order to proceed to the next phase.
21 July 25	Following more detailed analysis, 134 sites were selected for field visits. Of these: - 85 visits were completed - 25 sites had limpets successfully installed for future monitoring - 30 sites could not have limpets installed due to access issues or meter chamber constraints - 30 sites were found to be occupied and therefore not eligible for Limpet installation - Currently, 27 devices have been installed against a target of 100.
June 25	Challenges encounters in the installation of loggers : Premises Challenges Poor or outdated address data – Difficult to recognise or locate sites in their current form, especially for properties vacant since market opening. Change of use – Many previously non-household sites had been converted to domestic use, making them ineligible. Demolished or redeveloped sites – Some locations had been completely removed or were now building sites. Unreliable occupancy status – Properties showing signs of intermittent use, faulty meters giving false readings, or recent occupancies not yet updated in market records. Landlord or owner unresponsiveness – Difficulty gaining entry to long-term vacant sites when landlords were untraceable or uncooperative. Wholesaler approval delays – Site visits couldn’t proceed without prior wholesaler approval, adding an administrative barrier to accessing premises. Technology Challenges Meter compatibility – Limpet devices could only be installed on certain meter types and within specific pit sizes. Faulty meter assets – Some meters were defective or not functioning properly, affecting both eligibility assessment and installation. Installation constraints – Even when the property was eligible, the meter pit configuration sometimes prevented installation. Limited device performance data – Only 20% of installed Limpet devices showed usage signals, suggesting either low occupancy detection or potential device sensitivity/accuracy issues. These constraints meant that even when a site was identified and accessible, a significant portion still couldn’t proceed to successful installation.
30 April 2025	First 2 phases complete. Next milestone includes installation and field visits, which is expected at end of May. Milestone 4 includes the final report and is scheduled for publication in July 2025.
25 March 2025	First 2 phases complete Next milestone (number 3) includes installation and field visits - expected at end of April 2025 Milestone 3 (installation and field visits) to be completed at the end of April 2025 Milestone 4 includes the final report and is on schedule for December 2025.
31 January 2025	Permissions for data sharing obtained Target list with Business Stream agreed Market data extracted for all SPIDs Desk top analysis and trace activities completed by project analysts Hardware procured