Can the electricity supply be cut off?

Yes. The supply can be cut off when certain situations occur, such as:

• Non-payment of invoices
• Preventing access to the meter
• Fortuitous events or cases of force majeure
• Safety or service reasons
• Transfer of electricity to third parties
• Fraudulent behaviour

In the event of a cut-off for non-payment, your supplier must give you 20 days’ written notice before cutting off your supply. The notice must tell you the reasons for the disconnection, how you can avoid it and the cost of disconnecting and restoring your supply, which are defined by ERSE.

For standard low-voltage customers, and provided there is access to the installation, an interruption of service for non-payment can only occur after the contracted power is reduced to 1.15 kVA. The reduction must be notified in writing at least 5 days in advance.

If you continue not to pay, your service can be interrupted, counting 20 days from the date of the power reduction.

If you are a standard low-voltage customer (including household customers), your electricity supply cannot be cut off on Fridays, the day before public holidays, on public holidays or at weekends.

If you are cut off, due to lack of payment, you should contact your supplier and ask for information on how to make the outstanding payment (you can ask to pay in instalments).

Once you have paid or signed a payment agreement, and for consumers with contracted power up to 41.4 kVA, the supply must be restored within 6 hours. This period does not include the time between 00:00 and 8:00. You can request that the supply be restored urgently (within 3 hours), paying the additional price, set annually by ERSE.

If you do not yet have a smart meter or it is not yet integrated into a smart grid, the restoration period is 12 hours. In this case, urgent restoration must be carried out within 4 hours.

If there are no meter readings, can the supply be cut off?

Yes. If the distribution system operator does not access the meter for four months and the consumer does not report a reading, an extraordinary reading must be carried out.

The date for the extraordinary reading must be agreed between the consumer and the distribution system operator.

If the date is not agreed within 20 days of the consumer being notified, the supply may be cut off.

Extraordinary readings entail costs for the consumer, which are determined annually by ERSE.

Can the supply be cut off for safety or service reasons?

Yes. If the continued supply of electricity to your home endangers the safety of people or property, or if it is necessary to carry out manoeuvres, connection, repair or maintenance work on the electricity grid, you may be left without electricity.

Where possible (for safety reasons) and at least 36 hours in advance (for service reasons), affected consumers should be warned (individually or by other appropriate means, e.g. the media) of the electricity supply cut off.

Contact the distribution system operator to find out the expected time for the supply to be restored.

What are fortuitous events or cases of force majeure?

These are situations that could not be foreseen or avoided outside the electricity supply service, such as more intense atmospheric variations that cause an interruption in supply.

Contact the distribution system operator to find out the expected time for the supply to be restored.

Find out more about the  2023 Electricity Technical Quality of Service Report.