Claims for compensation

A. Direct property damage

We, alongside all other Victorian distributors, assess claims in line with the Electricity Distribution Code of Practice, Schedule 4.

Where direct property damage occurs as a result of a voltage variation event, compensation may be offered for the repair or replacement value of an appliance.

Compensation does not cover consequential losses.

Note: A consequential loss (also known as an indirect loss) isn’t directly related to a voltage variation but results from it. This includes a loss of business income or food spoilage.

Only direct losses can be claimed.

B. Damage other than appliance damage

Occasionally, accidental damage may occur. Please submit a claim if you’ve experienced other losses and believe we are responsible. The damage will be investigated and you may be eligible for compensation.

To support your claim, you’ll need to provide evidence such as invoices, photos, or other relevant documentation.

C. An extended unplanned power outage

An unplanned power outage is when your electricity supply goes off without warning, but no voltage variation occurs.

In the event of an unplanned power outage, where our service standards for supply restoration or reliability are not met, you may be entitled to a Guaranteed Service Level payment.

This is an automatic payment that will be delivered through your electricity bill – you do not need to submit a claim. 

Visit the Network reliability page for more information.

Replacement value reflects the current value of your appliances at the time of the damage using ATO depreciation rates. This is called ‘like-for-like’ and differs from insurers that offer ‘new-for-old’.

We use the ATO depreciation schedule as it provides the most consistent and efficient way to calculate compensation for damaged appliances and this approach is used by all Victorian electricity distributors.

How replacement value is calculated:

• The amount claimed is divided by its expected lifespan (in years). This provides the yearly value.
• The yearly value is multiplied by remaining lifespan (in years). This provides the compensation value.

Calculate the replacement value of your appliance using our calculator at the bottom of this page.

• Incident and postal address
• Email and phone contact
• NMI number associated with the incident address (providing the NMI will assist us in processing your request)

• Incident date and time
• Proof of damage – damage report from a qualified repairer* and clear photos of the damage
• Proof of purchase – scan or photo of the original purchase receipt and model serial number of your damaged appliance

If applicable, please hold onto your damaged item while your claim is being assessed. 

*A qualified repairer is a person suitably qualified to assess the damage of the item, e.g. an electrician for electrical installation, and a manufacturer or appliance repairer for TVs, fridges, etc. 

In the event of a voltage variation, business customers are required to demonstrate they have reasonable protection in place to be eligible for compensation. Common examples include:

• surge protectors
• under voltage protectors
• uninterruptible power supplies (UPS)

We recommend you do a risk assessment and speak to a Registered Electrical Contractor about these precautions for the right solution. Or, in the case of uninterruptable power supplies, contact a specialist IT service provider.

Visit our power quality page for a list of recommended business precautions.

Once your claim has been received, we will review our systems and consult with other business areas as part of our investigation.

On average, it takes 15 business days to investigate a claim, but complex claims may take longer.

If your claim is eligible, we’ll email you with an offer. If you are ineligible for compensation, we will write to you and advise of our reasons

Submitting a claim does not guarantee payment as not all claims are eligible for a compensation payment. We understand that sometimes the outcome may not meet your expectations. If you believe there are other factors we should consider which were not previously provided, you can request a review.

You may want to make a claim under your insurance policy if:

• you’re seeking compensation on a new-for-old basis
• you aren’t eligible to make a claim.

If we have a record of an incident affecting your property, we can provide a letter to assist with your insurance claim.

You can request an insurance letter through myEnergy. Login or register and choose ‘request an insurance letter’. We will email you the letter within five business days.

David noticed that the power went out in his street. When the power was restored, his television wouldn’t turn back on.

David submitted a claim for compensation to replace the TV, but his claim was not successful because there was no evidence of a power surge or brown out during the outage.

When you experience an outage or power interruption, appliances should be designed to handle this as it is no different to turning a power switch off and back on. If your appliance is affected during an outage with no voltage variation, then this can be attributed to an internal fault within the appliance itself.

As there was no voltage variation detected during the outage, David was not eligible for compensation.

Mary’s home experienced a power surge and her fridge was damaged.  The fridge is four years old and cost $900 new.

Mary engaged a qualified repairer to visit her home and assess the fridge.  He provided Mary with a damage report.

Mary raised a claim providing the damage report and a receipt, which showed when she bought the fridge and how much she paid. Her claim was assessed and the date and time of the power surge was checked.

Her fridge was assessed on a “replacement value” basis.  This means that the age of the fridge was taken into consideration. As her fridge was four years old and had an expected 12-year lifespan, she was eligible for $600 of compensation.

Mary was provided with the claim offer and accepted the amount.  She put the claimed amount toward the purchase of her new fridge.

A heavy storm hit the town and power was cut off when a tree fell on a powerline.
 

Sally kept her fridges closed for as long as possible, but the length of the outage caused some food spoilage.

She is not eligible to claim to her electricity distributor for food losses caused by power outages, but her insurance policy provided coverage.

Therefore, Sally requested an insurance letter to support her claim. After confirming the outage date and duration, the letter was issued.

She was able to make her insurance claim with the evidence of the outage.

Jim runs a café. Last week, a car crashed into a power pole nearby, causing a power surge that damaged his POS machine.

He submitted a claim to cover the repair costs. As part of the assessment, he was asked whether his café had reasonable precautions in place, like surge protection devices.

Jim felt frustrated. It wasn’t something he could’ve predicted, yet his business took the hit. However, since Jim did not have any surge protection installed, his claim wasn’t approved.

To be eligible for compensation, business customers need to demonstrate that they’ve taken reasonable steps to protect their equipment.