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Recently our electricity supply got cut off for about 19 hours. It caused a lot of inconvenience. Are we entitled to any compensation?

Under most circumstances, a consumer can claim a set amount of compensation for the time that they are without their electricity supply. After 18 hours of continuous interruption of supply a domestic consumer is entitled to £50. For each subsequent 12-hour period, a further amount of £25 will be paid. There are exemptions to these rules that mean a company can decline to pay compensation. However, these exemptions only follow exceptional circumstances in which it would not be reasonable to expect the company to be able to restore supply. Two of those exceptional circumstances are that severe weather conditions interfered with attempts to restore supply or that there was a significant electrical supply emergency caused by the actions of a third party. The good news is that while companies can claim these exemptions, they can be challenged. For help in doing this, contact energywatch, the independent gas and electricity watchdog, on 0845 906 0708. If an agreement still cannot be reached with the company, you can ask Ofgem, the regulator, to determine whether the exemption is valid. For more information on consumer rights, contact your local CAB.

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