These standards have been set by the energy regulator Ofgem in accordance with the Electricity Standards of Performance Regulations 2015, as amended by the Electricity Standards of Performance (Amendment) Regulations 2023.
If we fail to meet these standards, customers are entitled to receive a payment. In most cases we make payments automatically, but in some cases where we may be unaware that we have failed, you need to make a claim.
Sometimes the guaranteed standards may not apply due to events beyond our control, such as the actions of third parties, being unable to gain access to premises or our own equipment, for example, when prevented from accessing our equipment by the emergency services or other utilities, due to severe weather conditions such as flooding, snowdrifts or fallen trees, or due to an impediment such as parked cars, skips, scaffolding or locked gates. In some cases, we may not have been able to identify the customers affected by supply interruptions.
If any of these exemptions are invoked, we will need to demonstrate that we had taken all reasonable steps to prevent the exceptional circumstances occurring and to prevent failure of the relevant standard.
Guaranteed Standards
Supply Restoration during Normal Weather (Regulation 5)
If your electricity supply fails during normal weather conditions because of a problem on our distribution system, we will restore it within 12 hours of first becoming aware of the problem.
If you are without electricity for more than a continuous period of 12 hours, we will arrange for you to receive a £95 payment if you are a domestic customer or £190 if you are a non-domestic customer. You will also receive a further £45 for each additional 12-hour period that you are off supply.
Supply Restoration during Normal Weather – Incidents affecting 5,000 customers or more (Regulation 6)
If your electricity supply fails during normal weather conditions because of a single incident on our distribution system affecting 5,000 premises or more, we will restore it within 24 hours of first becoming aware of the problem. If you are without electricity for more than a continuous period of 24 hours, we will arrange for you to receive a £95 payment if you are a domestic customer or £190 if you are a non-domestic customer. You will also receive a further payment of £45 for each additional 12-hour period that you are off supply up to a maximum of £390.
Supply Restoration during Severe Weather (Regulation 7)
If your electricity supply fails because of a problem on our distribution system due to severe weather we will restore it within the period prescribed by the Regulations, dependent upon the scale of the event as defined below:
Category of severe weather definition
- Category 1 (medium events)
- Lightning events – when a distributor experiences at least 8 times the normal amount of higher. Voltage faults in 1 day, supplies will be restored within 24 hours.
- Non-lightning events – when a distributor experiences 8 or more but fewer than 13 times the normal amount of higher voltage faults in 1 day, supplies will be restored within 24 hours.
- Category 2 (large events)
- Non-lightning events – when a distributor experiences at least 13 times the normal amount of faults in 1 day, supplies will be restored within 48 hours.
Rota Disconnections (Regulation 8)
In very rare emergency situations, there may be supply shortages in your locality and your electricity supply may need to be interrupted on a rota basis in order to share the available load. We aim to minimize the amount of time that your supply would be affected in such cases. We will, at any rate, ensure that there is a total of no more than 24 hours without electricity during the period covered by a rota disconnection event. If you are without supply for a period before we commence rota disconnections, this would be covered by Regulations 5, 6 or 7 as appropriate. If we fail, we will arrange for you to receive a £95 payment if you are a domestic customer or £190 if you are a non-domestic customer.
Multiple Interruptions (Regulation 10)
If your electricity supply fails because of a problem on our distribution system and you are without power for three hours or more, on four or more different occasions in any 12-month period starting on 1 April, you are entitled to a £95 payment. Because our systems are currently unable to readily provide us with this information, you must make a valid claim for this payment by the end of June following the end of the year to which the claim applies. In order for your claim to be verified you will need to provide the address of the premises affected and the dates of the electricity supply failures. Incidents for which a payment has already been made cannot be included in your claim.
Distributor’s Fuse (Regulation 11)
If you report information that leads us to believe that the reason for your loss of supply is due to a failure of the main fuse between the incoming supply cable and your meter, we will attend your premises within 3 hours on weekdays if you notify us between 7am and 7pm. At weekends and on bank holidays we will attend within 4 hours if you contact us between 9am and 5pm. If you notify us outside these times, we will treat your call as if we had received it at the start of the next day. If we fail to attend within the prescribed period, we will arrange for you to receive a £40 payment.
Notice of Planned Supply Interruption (Regulation 12)
If we need to switch off your power to carry out planned maintenance work on our network, we will give you at least 2 calendar days’ notice. This may be a letter, a card or a text or email, delivered to the address or contact details held on our records. We will always give as much notice of a planned interruption as possible, even if we know we’ve already failed the standard. If we fail to give you 2 days’ notice or we switch your electricity off on a different day, then you can make a claim within 1 month of the failure. We will arrange for you to receive a payment of £40 if you are a domestic customer or £75 if you are a non-domestic customer.
Voltage Complaints (Regulation 13)
If you report that you believe that the voltage of the electricity to your premises is operating beyond the permitted limits (+10%/-6%), we will send you an explanation within 5 working days or offer to visit you to investigate within 7 working days. If you call after 4pm on a working day, we will treat the enquiry as being received on the next working day. If we offer to visit your premises, we must keep the appointment. If we fail to respond within the required timescales or fail to attend the appointment, we will arrange for you to receive a payment of £40.
Appointments (Regulation 17)
If we need to visit you at your property, or if you request a visit from us for any reason, you will be offered an appointment during the morning or afternoon or within a two-hour time band. However, this standard does not apply to visits relating to connections work. If we fail to make or keep an appointment, we will arrange for you to receive a payment of £40.
Notification of Payment under Guaranteed Standards (Regulation 19)
We will notify you of any guaranteed standards that we have failed to meet (other than those for which you have to make a claim for payment). In any case, we will send you payment within 10 working days of becoming aware of the failure except in the case of Regulation 7, Supply Restoration during Severe Weather, when we will issue payment as soon as is reasonably practicable. We will make your payment by cheque or by bank transfer if you provide us with your bank details for us to do so. If we fail to make the required payment to you or your supplier within the above timescales, we will arrange for you to receive an additional payment of £40.