Hi. After having power cuts today i had to find a number for the emergency line. After calling my own energy company, all i got told was , to call this 0800 783 8838.

Now 0800 numbers are not free on mobiles and as i had no power, could not use my home phone. Well I called them up and asked for a normal geographical number. They said they don't have one. Well i don't believe them.

I can't find a geographical number. So can anyone tell me what it may be. Thanks.  :)

http://www.ukpowernetworks.co.uk/safety-emergencies/what-to-do-emergency/index.shtml

As has been mentioned many times, the dial-through geographical numbers for use from mobiles are 020 0222 0900 and 020 0222 0700. Using one of these will allow calls to 0800/0808/0500 so-called "freephone" numbers. Charges will be as geographical calls, thus will often reduce the cost from mobiles.

Ok thanks sherbert but i am really after the geographic number behind the 0800 number above.

I don't use my mobile enough to sign up to one of them services. I was caught off guard today. I would not of have time to mess round with what you suggested.  :)

Who said you did?

You don't have to sign up to anything.

Just dial one of the numbers I gave you, after the prompt dial the 0800 number but don't press the 'green start button' again at the end of dialling the number.

Up until this point I'd never heard of UK Power Networks. Wikipedia says that it used to be owned by EDF energy and changed its name in October.

The simplest way to contact this helpline would be to either use a dial through provider, such as those suggested by sherbert or to buy a corded telephone.

In most cases of power loss in a residential dwelling, there is no need to contact the distributor. Supply networks usually know when power has been lost and they usually reset it within five or ten minutes (unless there is something more serious wrong, in which case it'll probably trip out again). I can understand that where someone has life-dependant medical equipment that requires mains that they might wish to speak to the distributor. And probably businesses as well.


So how might we find out an alternative? And if we do, how reliable might it be? The 08 number will be the one that is redirected should they move or should one call centre be unavailable (e.g. a fire evacuation).

I don't think that there's much point in going to these lengths due to the possible issues of unreliability. The dial through number will do exactly the same thing and the whole number can be stored in a mobile phone by inserting a pause between the 020 dial through number and destination 0800 number.

Hi, just a couple of points.   We used to be with EDF when we lived in Essex, for years we tried to find geo numbers for their 0845s for eg customer services but it was pretty much impossible, certainly never for the 0800 number which can get you through to offices almost anywhere within their area although the HQ covering Essex was based in Ipswich (01473 I believe is the dialling code).   Surely the dial through would be the best option if you don't want to buy a corded phone (we did buy one just for power cuts as we used to have loads, you can get one for about £6 & use the same phone socket as the cordless when the power is down).

One point from Dave's post, having become pretty expert on power failures & deficiencies (!) we were always told that you should always phone in if you lost power, firstly because the companies are not automatically aware of failures on the low voltage network, only the high voltage unless customers contact them, it also certainly was the case that they waited for notification of a power cut on LV from more than one customer before they took action, I regularly had to phone round neighbours to get them to phone in & report it!!!   Deplorable I know but that was how it worked.

Barbara wrote on Jun 27^th, 2011 at 2:56pm:

Hi, just a couple of points.   We used to be with EDF when we lived in Essex, for years we tried to find geo numbers for their 0845s for eg customer services but it was pretty much impossible, certainly never for the 0800 number which can get you through to offices almost anywhere within their area although the HQ covering Essex was based in Ipswich (01473 I believe is the dialling code).   Surely the dial through would be the best option if you don't want to buy a corded phone (we did buy one just for power cuts as we used to have loads, you can get one for about £6 & use the same phone socket as the cordless when the power is down).

A corded phone is always advisable for contacting emergency services in the event of power failure. There may also be other reasons when the electricity is off such as an elderly relative trying to make contact.



Barbara wrote on Jun 27^th, 2011 at 2:56pm:

One point from Dave's post, having become pretty expert on power failures & deficiencies (!) we were always told that you should always phone in if you lost power, firstly because the companies are not automatically aware of failures on the low voltage network, only the high voltage unless customers contact them, it also certainly was the case that they waited for notification of a power cut on LV from more than one customer before they took action, I regularly had to phone round neighbours to get them to phone in & report it!!!   Deplorable I know but that was how it worked.

There is an SMS text service for faults on UK Power Networks network:

http://www.ukpowernetworks.co.uk/products-services/networks/customer-services/contact-us.shtml

It depends on what area you live in as to what service they offer. I know that my own distributor has a facility on its website where a post code can be entered and it will return any reports of loss for that location. I have been unable to find an equivalent system for UK Power Networks.


Clearly there are circumstances where the network may be unaware of loss of supply and it stands to reason that these are usually on the lower voltage parts. There are obviously many more of them than there are higher-voltage substations, which probably means that to alarm them and install remote switches (assuming that such solutions exist) will be greater. Not only that, the number of premises affected when power is lost will be less per-installation.

So it strikes me that such a solution may well be prohibitive and as such I do not consider it deplorable. That is my unqualified opinion having thought about what I said in the previous paragraph.


It is encouraging what UK Power Networks says:

Quote:

We’re installing more remote-controlled switches to improve our service.

Clearly without any technical qualification we shouldn't read too much into this.


But all this does go to show that there may still be a need to contact one's electricity network operator in times of outage.

Dave, I think you have misunderstood my point, I was not saying it was deplorable they they didn't know about power outages on the LV networks but that they wouldn't believe a customer who said their power was off; we faced the situation of living in a very small village where few people were at home during the day, often I was the only one on our feed so obviously I would be the only one to report a power cut & having to phone round ever more distant villagers to find someone who was in to back up my report before EDF would start to take remedial action was what I consider to be deplorable as it was offensive to be disbelieved and it delayed the start of the repair.   As I said, we had so many power problems (in one year in the 1990s an executive of EDF's predecessor asked me to send him a list of power outages for the preceding year - it ran to FOUR pages of A4, he was absolutely shocked & some action followed) that we ended up knowing more about the system and the sites of likely problems than the call centre staff yet we were still not believed.

Barbara wrote on Jun 27^th, 2011 at 3:45pm:

Dave, I think you have misunderstood my point, I was not saying it was deplorable they they didn't know about power outages on the LV networks but that they wouldn't believe a customer who said their power was off; we faced the situation of living in a very small village where few people were at home during the day, often I was the only one on our feed so obviously I would be the only one to report a power cut & having to phone round ever more distant villagers to find someone who was in to back up my report before EDF would start to take remedial action was what I consider to be deplorable as it was offensive to be disbelieved and it delayed the start of the repair.   As I said, we had so many power problems (in one year in the 1990s an executive of EDF's predecessor asked me to send him a list of power outages for the preceding year - it ran to FOUR pages of A4, he was absolutely shocked & some action followed) that we ended up knowing more about the system and the sites of likely problems than the call centre staff yet we were still not believed.

Sorry I misunderstood your point.

It's not an easy one for them to decide whether to take action when someone rings up saying their power is off.

On the one hand there are those of us who are astute enough to verify that it is a supply problem (by checking other circuits and distribution board) and on the other hand distributors must have to contend with people ringing up saying that they have no power when the fault is within their own premises (and therefore not the distributor's responsibility).

I don't know whether they would charge if it turns out to be a fault beyond their network. If they're not allowed to, then that would be a reason why they might air more on the side of caution and wait for multiple calls from one are.

In any case, it's wasted man hours on the part of the distributor if it's not their fault.


I would have thought that if there are repeated power failures in one particular area, that this would be flagged as a possible fault. That's the easy bit though; how to locate it?

To answer your point Dave, yes, they can charge, in fact whenever we used to report a power cut, they always asked had we checked our fuses etc? were our neighbours off? (problem with no neighbours around!) as if it was found to be our side we would face a charge. Also, in certain cases, even if the fault was not on their network, the customer might be vulnerable or not have access to an electrician (eg at night) so they might need and be prepared to pay for the supply co to come, diagnose & do the work, particularly if the fault meant touching the supply network which anyone outside the industry would not be allowed to do.  As you say, they should be aware of where there are regular problems (if pressed, they will check the records & realise this).  I think the most incredible experience we had was with EDF's predecessor who tranferred their postcode database from one system to another & in the process lost the data of a lot of customers, we rang to report a power cut & were told we did not exist, having eventually persuaded them that we were real, flesh & blood customers without power, they told us if we rang again to pretend we were neighbours from along the road whose details had been transferred!!!!!!!!   (This was the 1990s & EDF are an improvement on the previous lot but you can probably now understand my lack of faith in them all)  Sorry have rather gone off the point of the OP but it does illustrate a systemic issue.

Dave wrote on Jun 27^th, 2011 at 2:47pm:

In most cases of power loss in a residential dwelling, there is no need to contact the distributor. Supply networks usually know when power has been lost and they usually reset it within five or ten minutes (unless there is something more serious wrong, in which case it'll probably trip out again). I can understand that where someone has life-dependant medical equipment that requires mains that they might wish to speak to the distributor. And probably businesses as well. I don't think that there's much point in going to these lengths due to the possible issues of unreliability. The dial through number will do exactly the same thing and the whole number can be stored in a mobile phone by inserting a pause between the 020 dial through number and destination 0800 number.

Hi dave. I was doing some important stuff on my computer when my power suddenly went off. I lost  my work because of the power cut. As this has never happened before i was lost who to call. The company that does my billing, don't run or own the power network or cables in my area. So they gave me the 0800 number for,UK power networks. UK Power networks runs and owns the former eastern electricity region. I was told that some workman had gone through a power cable and they were aware of it. My power was off for about an hour and a half. So more than ten minutes.

Edit. See this for your region. http://www.nationalgrid.com/uk/Electricity/AboutElectricity/DistributionCompanies/


Well ok will use the dial through number in future but would rather just have the geographical number behind it.
:)

Boxter wrote on Jun 28^th, 2011 at 10:57pm:

Hi dave. I was doing some important stuff on my computer when my power suddenly went off. I lost  my work because of the power cut. As this has never happened before i was lost who to call. The company that does my billing, don't run or own the power network or cables in my area. So they gave me the 0800 number for,UK power networks. UK Power networks runs and owns the former eastern electricity region. I was told that some workman had gone through a power cable and they were aware of it. My power was off for about an hour and a half. So more than ten minutes. Edit. See this for your region. http://www.nationalgrid.com/uk/Electricity/AboutElectricity/DistributionCompanies/ Well ok will use the dial through number in future but would rather just have the geographical number behind it. :)

Thanks for the update. The map is particularly helpful and shows the way in which local electricity distribution is fragmented as the modern way of doing things these days.

Good Evening,

Just a quick note.. just needed to have a look for alternatives to a few companies and UK Power Networks sprang to mind.. It turns out they now have Mobile Friendly numbers: http://www.ukpowernetworks.co.uk/internet/en/contact-us/power-cuts-and-emergencies.html

They are 03 based.  :)

They describe the 03 numbers as being "free from mobile phones".

Ian G wrote on Mar 6^th, 2014 at 10:22pm:

They describe the 03 numbers as being "free from mobile phones".

Clearly some working on the wording needs to be done..

I have to admit I didn't look in great detail..

I am sure they have other contact methods to point out the error...

CJT-80 wrote on Mar 6^th, 2014 at 8:48pm:

Good Evening, Just a quick note.. just needed to have a look for alternatives to a few companies and UK Power Networks sprang to mind.. It turns out they now have Mobile Friendly numbers: http://www.ukpowernetworks.co.uk/internet/en/contact-us/power-cuts-and-emergencies.html They are 03 based.  :)

Thanks. I've updated the entries.

I discovered several months ago that UK Power Networks offered 01243 numbers alongside the 0800s. These have now been replaced by 0333s.