power cut damages TV - compensation ?

wolvotim

mkcheznous wrote: »

The EON engineer on site said that he cut the cable as it was dangerous as it was exposed to standing water. I was told this affected 200 houses and thus we could not be all warned which is fair enough. The only thing not clear is how they became aware of the problem - I do know that some neighbouring houses were cut off a few days ago - so it is probably related to that.

There could have been a fault brewing on the main for a few days hence a few other customers having an interruption a few days back. Mains cables are worked on de-energise in fault situations due to their unpredictable nature a discharge could prove fatal to engineers working on or near. Informing customers of an interruption in a fault situation simply is not feasible and not required in the ESQC regs. To comply to our distribution safety rules re-energising of mains cable has to be done using a "fusemate" or "rezap" which is why you electricity came on for a few seconds then went off before coming back on. Fusemates and rezaps are designed to not cause voltage spikes or troughs during current inrush.

I’m sorry to say that insurance is probably your only route in this situation although Central Networks will give you I think £28 if you were off for more than 18 hours.

Pink_fluff

mkcheznous wrote: »

As predicted EON do not want to know.

They said they would not send an electrician to check the system - said they had nobody qualified !

They did say I could get somebody at my expense to check it.

Their engineers (NOT the same as an electrician!) are not qualified to work on the internals of your house. They are qualified to work on the distribution network ie. Cables, power lines etc....

That will be why they said they had nobody qualified.

dacouch

You may find your home contents will cover it as a power surge, worth giving them a ring

tinkerbelle

I would phone EON & ask them for there claims administration department either email or address to write to Every distrubator will have a claims department. I would also ask for the job reference number that the power cut was raised under. It might be worthwhile just sending the claims department an email, i would imagine that they would ask you to get an engineers report that the tv broke as a result of the power cut but it might be worthwhile just dropping them a line.

Normally appliances tend to blow when the neutral is lost on a cable as this is what protects the voltage from getting too high. When the neutral is lost the voltage goes sky high & starts blowing appliances in the property.

wolvotim

tinkerbelle wrote: »

I would phone EON & ask them for there claims administration department either email or address to write to Every distrubator will have a claims department. I would also ask for the job reference number that the power cut was raised under. It might be worthwhile just sending the claims department an email, i would imagine that they would ask you to get an engineers report that the tv broke as a result of the power cut but it might be worthwhile just dropping them a line.

Normally appliances tend to blow when the neutral is lost on a cable as this is what protects the voltage from getting too high. When the neutral is lost the voltage goes sky high & starts blowing appliances in the property.

Even in neutral fault situations it’s very unlikely a network operator will compensate. It’s a job for insurance it may simply be quicker and easier to claim from them

Premier_2

It's a 5+ year old TV!

It may be simpler & easier to just buy a new one

Still, good on ya for writing to your MP about it. If he doesn't get you a nice new TV, that'll be the perfect excuse to kick him out of office at the next election. In the unlikely event he does get you a nice new TV, kick him out of office anyway as he's obviously got nothing better to do with his time!

imroberts

Premier wrote: »

It may be simpler & easier to just buy a new one

That's not the MoneySaving attitude :rotfl:

mkcheznous

Premier wrote: »

It's a 5+ year old TV!

It may be simpler & easier to just buy a new one

Still, good on ya for writing to your MP about it. If he doesn't get you a nice new TV, that'll be the perfect excuse to kick him out of office at the next election. In the unlikely event he does get you a nice new TV, kick him out of office anyway as he's obviously got nothing better to do with his time!

I find your comment offensive. I was perfectly happy with my TV until it stopped working - in fact it had a far better picture than most LCD / Plasma units I have seen. You may a large amount of disposable income but you should not assume others have. I involved my MP because one of their main roles is to take up grievances on behalf of their constituents. I could have gone down the Citizens advice route but thought this one might have a better chance and would certainly be quicker.

For those who say that I should use the Home Insurance option - I understand your point - path of least resistance but it will end up costing my later with a higher premium. I reserve the right to use this but it is a last resort.

Freddie_Snowbits

Obviously the OP did not live through the miners strikes of the early 1970's, when the TV and the lecky used to only come on for a certain time.

moonrakerz

Some years back I had a video recorder give up the ghost when we lost power. The power actually went on & off several times before it finally failed completely. I was reasonably "satisfied" that this was what caused my video to expire.
I wrote to Southern Electric, and got a very snotty letter back saying it was nothing to do with them and any damage was caused by "the way I had switched it back on".
I wrote back saying that if they hadn't disconnected me I wouldn't have needed to "switch it back on" - they paid up !