Has the power gone out in your area?
We feel you! You don’t know what you have until it’s gone! Power outages never occur at a convenient time. It almost always happens when you haven’t saved your work, you’re watching your favourite TV show, or the washing machine is half way through a cycle!
Reporting power outages can help electricity distributors (or power utility companies) respond faster to incidents, ensuring everyone is safe and powering along nicely.
Simply click on your state or territory below to find out who to call to report a blackout or other incident involving power infrastructure. All contact numbers are open 24/7.
Remember, call 000 for any emergencies with an immediate danger to life or property
…Or is it just you?
If it’s only your home without power, then check your switchboard to ensure all switches are on. If a switch doesn’t stay on after attempting to flick it on, there may be an electrical fault on your property that requires a licensed electrician to investigate.
For those of us in Perth, the Peel and South West WA, Sarros Electrical are here to help you 24/7! Simply give us a call and we’ll come out and get you powering along again safely!
If the blackout is affecting not just you, but your neighbourhood, the following will help you determine who to call:
How to report a power outage in the ACT
The team at Evoenergy look after most of the ACT’s power grid (and gas). You can report all electricity outages or incidents involving electrical infrastructure directly to them, 24/7.
Canberrans and other ACT residents can contact Evoenergy’s electricity emergency line on 13 10 93, or report faults online here.
A small section of ACT’s rural power grid is managed by Essential energy. To report a fault in an area covered by Essential Energy, see their details in the New South Wales section.
How to report a power outage in NSW
NSW has 3 electricity distribution companies looking after the state’s power grid. Each of these companies have reporting avenues to report power outages or incidents regarding power infrastructure available 24/7. Essential Energy covers most of regional NSW.
If you live in regional NSW or some Southern parts of Queensland, such as Goondiwindi and Texas, report power outages to Essential Energy on 13 20 80.
Sydney-siders and nearby residents can report power outages and related incidents to either Endeavour Energy or Ausgrid.
If you live in Sydney’s West, the Blue Mountains, the Southern Highlands or NSW’s South Coast, report power outages to Endeavour Energy on 131 003.
If you live in Inner or Northern Sydney, Sutherland, Hornsby, Gosford, Newcastle, or up to the Hunter Valley, contact Ausgrid on 13 13 88 to report power outages or hazards.
How to report a power outage in the Territory
All of the Northern Territory’s power grid is cared for by the Power and Water Corporation.
Territorians can report power outages and other electrical hazards related to public power infrastructure on 1800 245 090 or via Power and Water’s website 24 hours a day.
How to report a power outage in Queensland
Energex is South East Queensland’s energy distributor, looking after electrical infrastructure from Rainbow Beach down to Tweed Heads and out past Gatton. This includes all residents in Brisbane, the Gold Coast, Ipswich and the Sunshine Coast.
Brisbane residents and South East Queenslanders including those on the Sunshine Coast and Gold Coast can report power outages to Energex on 13 62 62 and faults, such as fallen power lines, to 13 19 62.
All other Regional Queenslanders, from the Torres Strait Islands to outback Queensland and down to the South (except for the Goondiwindi enclave covered by Essential Energy – see the NSW section if you live here) are cared for by Ergon Energy Network.
Regional Queenslanders can report power outages and faults 24/7 to Ergon Energy on 13 22 96.
How to report a power outage in South Australia
SA Power Networks empowers all of South Australia including Adelaide and surrounds.
All South Australian power outages and electrical faults can be reported to SA Power Networks on 13 13 66.
Their website kindly reminds you to check that the power outage isn’t just you by checking your switchboard before making a report. If the power outage is due to a reason coming from your property, you’ll need to contact a licensed electrician to rectify the fault.
How to report a power outage in Tasmania
Tasmanians have one power distribution company that looks after the whole state – Tasmanian Networks.
Tasmanians can report power outages and power faults (such as fallen or low powerlines) to Tasmanian Networks on 132 004.
How to report a power outage in Victoria
Victoria is obviously the place to be for power distribution companies! There’s 5 electricity distributors looking after the grid – more than any other state! You can find a great map showing each distributor’s area of operation here.
Citipower looks after Melbourne city, Balwyn, Brunswick, Camberwell, Hawthorn, Kew, Northcote, Port Melbourne, South Yarra, St Kilda, Thornbury and Toorak (and all suburbs in between).
Melbournians can report power outages and faults to Citipower on 13 12 80.
Western Victorians are covered by Powercor. This includes the regional centres of Ballarat, Bendigo, Hamilton, Horsham, Mildura, Portland, Shepparton, Swan Hill and Warrnambool.
Western Victorians and those living in the Western suburbs of Melbourne can contact Powercor on 13 24 12 for all power outages and faults on power infrastructure.
Jemena distributes to North and Western Melbourne suburbs.
Jemena’s 24/7 phone number to report power outages and faults is 131 626
United Energy covers Melbourne’s South Eastern suburbs and the Mornington Peninsula.
Report power outages and faults to power infrastructure in Melbourne’s South East and the Mornington Peninsula to United Energy on 132 099.
AusNet looks after all of East Victoria and outer Melbourne’s outer Eastern and South Eastern suburbs, including the Dandenongs and Western Port Bay.
Report power outages in Eastern Victoria to Ausnet on 13 17 99.
How to report a power outage in Western Australia
Western Australia has two electricity distribution companies. The South West, including Perth, the Peel (Mandurah) and the entire coastline from Kalbarri to Augusta and across to Bremer Bay is serviced by Western Power. Western Power also looks after Kalgoorlie.
Residents in Perth, Kalgoorlie and WA’s South West can report power faults and power outages to Western Power on 13 13 51, 24 hours a day.
The rest of Western Australia, including Esperance/Gold Fields (except for Kalgoorlie and surrounds), Gascoyne/Mid West, Pilbara and Kimberley regions are serviced by Horizon Power.
All other residents of WA can report faults or power outages to Horizon Power on 13 23 51 at any time of day or night.
Why report a power outage or fault
Reporting power outages and faults helps keep everyone safe. Of course, if there’s an immediate danger to life or property, call 000.
Energy distribution companies will respond quickly to make the area safe then rectify the fault, bringing back power to you in no time!
Before reporting an power outage, ensure it’s not just you and your property. Faults coming from your switchboard or within your property are your responsibility. This means you need to call out a licensed electrician to ascertain the cause of the outage and how to fix it safely.
Thankfully, those living in Perth, Mandurah and WA’s South West have WA’s most trusted and fully licensed electrician looking after them – simply call the friendly team at Sarros Electrical when your power is out and we’ll get you powering along again in no time – safely!
Hopefully this list helps you – meanwhile, remember to save your work often and be grateful that we have such a comparatively stable power grid being maintained by 1000’s of technicians around Australia.