Northern Ireland: NIE Networks, Reporting and Help

If your electricity goes off in Northern Ireland, report it to NIE Networks on 03457 643 643. That single number is for reporting both a power cut and damaged equipment, and you can also report through the Powercheck app¹. Before you ring, check whether the cut is on your trip switches, then have your Meter Point Reference Number (MPRN) or your postcode and house number handy so NIE Networks can find your supply quickly³.

NIE Networks owns and maintains Northern Ireland's electricity network: the poles, wires and substations that carry power to your home⁴. It transports electricity from where it is generated to over 910,000 customers including homes, businesses and farms, and connects approximately 9,000 customers a year to the network⁴. One of its main priorities, it states, is to ensure that you have an uninterrupted supply of electricity⁴.

Report a power cut to NIE Networks on 03457 643 643

The NIE Networks Customer Helpline, 03457 643 643, is the number to call to report a power cut or a damaged power line¹. The same number is given across official guidance for storms, ice, thunderstorms and floods, so it is worth keeping it written down where you can find it in the dark². Householders can contact NIE 24 hours a day for advice, and there is a minicom number, 03457 147 128, and an email address, customercontact@nie.co.uk, if you cannot use the phone⁹.

Before you call, check whether the problem is on your side of the meter: look at your trip switches and consumer unit, and see whether your neighbours have power too. Then have your MPRN, or your postcode and house number, ready, as NIE Networks asks for these details when you report a fault³. If you rely on electricity for medical equipment, say so when you call, and make sure you are registered for extra help before an emergency happens. Our page on the Priority Services Register explains who can join and what it gives you.

One point that catches people out: in England, Scotland and Wales the free single number for power cuts is 105, but in Northern Ireland the number is 03457 643643¹⁰. If you are visiting or have recently moved, do not ring 105 expecting it to work in the same way.

Other ways to report: Power Check and the website

You do not always need to phone. Powercheck provides a real-time fault information map showing power cuts in your area, so you can see whether your outage is already known before you report it³. NIE Networks also publishes an updated list of areas affected by power cuts on its website during storms and severe weather¹². Official guidance suggests visiting your local network operator's website to report a power cut and track updates when there is a problem, and calling only if you cannot report online¹¹.

How long until the power comes back

NIE Networks' standards state that it will restore your electricity within 24 hours of a power cut⁵. Most cuts are resolved well inside that. For a picture of how quickly networks recover even in severe weather, official storm reviews from Great Britain are instructive: during the storms of 23 to 28 December 2013, Northern Powergrid restored 70.0 per cent of customers interrupted within one hour, 99.6 per cent within 12 hours, and 99.9 per cent within one day, while UK Power Networks restored 53.8 per cent within one hour, 83.6 per cent within 12 hours, and 92.5 per cent within one day¹⁴. During Storm Arwen in November 2021, Northern Powergrid restored 83.7 per cent of customers within 24 hours and Scottish Power Electricity Networks restored 87.4 per cent within 24 hours¹⁵.

Northern Ireland sits outside those reviews because it runs as a separate system: Ofgem's Storm Arwen review noted that Northern Ireland Electricity Distribution was not affected by Storm Arwen and was not part of that review¹⁵. The practical point for your household is the same either way. A single fault affecting your street is usually fixed in hours, while a storm that brings down lines across a whole region can take a day or more, and you should prepare for that possibility rather than assume a quick fix. Our page on how long until the electricity comes back explains what affects repair times.

If a cut drags on, keep your freezer shut, unplug sensitive appliances, and check on neighbours who may be struggling. Our pages on what to do when the electricity goes off and fridge and freezer food when the electricity is off cover this step by step.

Storms and severe weather: how NIE Networks responds

Northern Ireland's position facing the Atlantic makes wind storms the most common cause of widespread outages. Storm Boelo in October 2026 is a recent example: the Met Office issued amber and yellow weather warnings for strong winds on Saturday 24 and Sunday 25 October, warning of flying debris, large waves, travel delays, fallen trees and power cuts¹³. High winds damaged the electricity network and cut power to approximately 12,500 customers, with NIE Networks restoring around 11,500 and under 1,000 remaining without supply by the following day¹⁶.

During any storm, you can get information about electricity supply, including an updated list of areas affected by power cuts, on the NIE Networks website¹². The Met Office advises that people cope better with power cuts when they have prepared for them in advance, and suggests gathering torches and batteries, a mobile phone power pack and other essential items before the weather arrives¹⁷. Power cuts and loss of utilities are more likely in adverse weather conditions, so preparation matters most exactly when the forecast turns bad¹⁸.

Trees near power lines

Fallen trees are one of the main ways storms bring down lines. Never try to cut back trees or bushes yourself; instead, ask your power company so a qualified professional can manage the work safely¹⁹. If a tree has fallen and is blocking a road in Northern Ireland, you can report it on 0300 200 7891²⁰. If it has brought down a line with it, treat the line as live and keep everyone well away.

Staying safe: never touch damaged lines or equipment

The single most important safety rule during any power cut or storm is simple: never touch damaged electricity equipment¹. NIE Networks' own guidance to customers is blunt:

The same warning appears across official severe weather advice from nidirect: do not approach any damaged electricity equipment or broken power lines¹². North Wales Fire and Rescue Service adds a note about storms specifically: be careful not to touch any electrical or telephone cables that have been blown down or are still hanging²¹. A line lying on the ground can carry a lethal current, and you cannot tell by looking whether it is live. Stay at least five metres away and never attempt to move or touch it¹. Our page on fallen overhead lines covers what to do in more detail, including what to do if a vehicle touches a line.

Planned work: at least three days' notice

Not every power cut is a fault. If your supply is turned off for planned reasons, such as maintenance or network upgrades, NIE Networks must give you three days' notice, which usually arrives as a postcard through the door⁶. This is more generous than the position in Great Britain, where distribution network operators have to give two days' notice, usually via a letter⁵.

When a planned card arrives, read the date and times carefully and plan around them: charge phones and power banks in advance, think about how you will cook and keep warm, and check on anyone nearby who may need help. Our page on planned interruptions explains why they happen and how to prepare. If the planned cut does not go ahead on the day you were warned about, keep the postcard, as it matters for compensation.

Compensation after a long power cut

Northern Ireland has its own compensation rules, and they differ from those in Great Britain, so do not apply GB figures to an NI outage. For an unplanned power cut, NIE Networks' standards state that it will restore your electricity within 24 hours. If it does not, you are due £50, then £25 for every 12 hour period after that, and you must claim within one month of the day of the power interruption⁵. For a planned power cut, if you do not get the three days' notice you are entitled to, you can claim £25 per home, again within one month of the day of the interruption⁵.

For comparison, in Great Britain the rules are different: you can get £100 for homes if less than 5,000 properties are affected for more than 12 hours, or more than 5,000 properties are affected for more than 24 hours, with an extra £45 for every additional 12-hour period without electricity²³. Those figures do not apply in Northern Ireland, so always claim under the NI scheme.

You may also be able to claim for spoilt freezer contents on your home insurance, as National Grid's power cut advice notes, so check your policy after a long outage²⁵. Our page on what food to throw away after an outage helps you decide what is still safe.

Emergency rota power cuts: what they mean for your home

A storm cuts power because equipment is damaged. An emergency rota is different: it is a deliberate, planned series of power cuts shared across the country to reduce how much power Britain needs, without switching everyone off at once²⁶. If a national energy shortage were ever likely to last a few days, an emergency power cut rota would be published. You would enter your postcode to see when you would have a power cut the next day, and a timetable of risk for the days after, and you would need to keep checking the rota every evening as it is updated²⁶.

Rota disconnections have not been used in recent decades, but the mechanism exists and is planned for. If one were announced, the practical steps for your household would be the same as for any long outage: know your block letter, keep torches and charged power banks ready, and plan for keeping warm and cooking without mains power. Our pages on rota disconnections and finding your block letter for an emergency rota explain the system in full.

Getting ready for a long power cut at home

Preparation is the part you control, and official advice is consistent about what to gather. The Met Office puts it plainly:

Before a storm, nidirect's severe weather advice tells households to keep a supply of candles, and the Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service, ahead of Storm Éowyn in January 2025, advised making sure you are prepared for a power cut by having a torch or battery operated candles ready¹. A torch is the safer first choice, and battery-operated candles avoid the risks of a naked flame altogether. Community guidance on adverse weather goes further and advises avoiding candles and paraffin heaters²⁸. If you do use real candles, never leave them unattended, keep them away from curtains and anything that catches fire easily, and extinguish them before bed.

*A prepared household keeps torches, batteries, a power bank and essentials in one place it can find in the dark.]

What to have ready:

• Torches and batteries, gathered in advance¹⁷
• A mobile phone power pack, kept ready¹⁷
• A battery or wind-up radio for news and weather updates¹⁰
• A torch or battery-operated candles, ready before the power goes²⁷
• Your MPRN or postcode written down, so you can report a cut quickly³
• The NIE Networks number, 03457 643 643, somewhere you can find it in the dark¹

Look out for elderly neighbours and ensure they are prepared for a possible power cut, as the Met Office's seasonal advice recommends²⁹. If flooding accompanies the storm, turn off gas, electricity and water supplies if it is safe to do so before water reaches them⁹. Our checklists on power cut kit, what to keep charged and a household emergency plan go through this in more detail, and getting your home ready for a loss of supply covers the longer view.

Heaters, cooking and fire safety during an outage

Power cuts push households towards improvised heating and cooking, and that is where fire risk rises. The number one cause of accidental fires is cooking, so never leave cooking unattended, and if you need to leave the kitchen while cooking, take pans off the heat or turn them off completely, as NIFRS advises³⁰. Do not leave electrics charging on soft surfaces, do not overload extension leads, and stay vigilant for signs of overheating or malfunction when charging devices²². Smoking materials have been the leading cause of fatal house fires in Northern Ireland, accounting for 43% of such deaths over the past 10 years, and a majority of fatal fires started in a bedroom, followed by the living room and kitchen³¹. NIFRS strongly advises smoking outdoors and extinguishing cigarettes before placing them in a suitable container such as a metal bin³¹.

If a fire does start, get out, stay out and call 999²². Our pages on staying safe in the dark, keeping warm without electricity and carbon monoxide risks when the heating is off cover the specific dangers of outage heating.

Extra help: the NIFRS Home Fire Safety Check

The Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service offers a free Home Fire Safety Check to households, with referrals taken through the NIFRS website³². If you fit NIFRS Person at Risk criteria, have no access to the internet, or are unable to complete the online self-assessment, you can phone NIFRS on 028 9266 4221 to receive a free in-person Home Fire Safety Check³¹. NIFRS works collaboratively with partner agencies to reach those in the community who may be more at risk from fire, and its community safety work covers water safety, wildfire safety and seasonal fire safety advice as well as the home³³.

A fire safety check before winter, or before a storm season, is a sensible step for any household that may face a long power cut with candles, alternative heating and cooking by torchlight. If you rely on medical equipment that needs electricity, read our page on relying on medical equipment that needs electricity and its checklist, and make sure NIE Networks knows your circumstances before an emergency, not during one.