How to claim up to £2000 in compensation for power cuts during Storm Darragh

Storm Darragh's strong winds and wet weather caused widespread disruption in parts of Wales over the weekend. Cars and properties were damaged by falling trees, businesses were forced to close and hundreds of thousands of homes were left without power.

A rare red warning, meaning there could be a "danger to life", was issued by the Met Office due to the storm. As of 10am on Wednesday morning, National Grid said that over 7,000 homes across south and mid-Wales were still without power. You can read more about the people who have been left without power for days here.

If you were one of the many affected by power cuts during Storm Darragh, you may be entitled to compensation depending on how long it lasted and other criteria. For the latest Welsh news delivered to your inbox sign up to our newsletter

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Check if you are eligible

Network companies are responsible for maintaining supply on the grid and fixing power cuts. For south and mid-Wales, this is the National Grid and SP Energy Networks for North Wales.

You may be entitled to compensation if your electricity or gas supply goes off. The amount you can claim depends on whether the cut was planned, how long it lasted, or if it was the network company’s fault.

Compensation for power cuts in severe weather

The level of compensation you are entitled to depends on the category of the severe weather, and how long you were left without a power supply.

Storm category 1

You can get £85 if your power has been cut off for 24 hours.

You will get an extra £40 for every 6 hours afterwards. The maximum amount you can claim is £2,000.

Storm category 2

You can get £85 if your power has been cut off for 48 hours.

You will get an extra £40 for every 6 hours afterwards. The maximum amount you can claim is £2,000.

If the power cut is because of disruption to the national energy supply, you will not be entitled to compensation. This is because it is not due to a fault on the network.

Compensation for power cuts in normal weather

If your power is cut off, your local network company has either 12 or 24 hours to restore supplies. How long that takes depends on how many homes are affected by a single fault.

Power cut to less than 5,000 homes

If you are cut off for 12 hours or more, you can claim £95 as a domestic customer or £180 as a non-domestic customer. You can get a further £40 for each additional 12 hours of being off supply.

Power cut to more than 5,000 homes

If you are cut off for 24 hours or more, you can claim £95 as a domestic customer or £180 as a non-domestic customer. You can get an extra £40 for each additional 12 hours of being without electricity, up to a total of £360.

Compensation if your gas supply goes off

If you gas supply goes off and this is not planned, you can claim £70 as a domestic customer and £120 as a non-domestic customer for every 24 hours the gas is off.

You can claim more if your gas is off for more than 24 hours. The amount increases depending on how long your gas supply is off.

How to claim

Your network operator will arrange for you to get any compensation payments you are entitled to. You can find your network operator on the Energy Networks Association website.

You need to make compensation claims for any unplanned supply cuts within three months, and within one month for any planned cuts. You should make a claim through your local network operator.