Power Cut at Home in Accrington - What to Do Step by Step

Published September 2026 | Power Cut at Home What to Do Step by Step

We asked our Electrician engineers the questions Accrington homeowners ask most. Here's what they told us, straight from people who deal with electrical emergencies week in, week out across Lancashire.

How Do I Know If It's a Power Cut or a Fault Inside My Home?

This is the first question our engineers get asked, and it's the most important one to get right. The quickest way to tell the difference is to look outside. If your street lights are off or your neighbours are in the dark too, you're almost certainly looking at a network power cut. If everything outside looks normal and your neighbours still have lights, the problem is most likely inside your property.

Check your consumer unit - the modern term for what many people still call the fuse box. If one or more of the circuit breakers has tripped to the middle or "off" position, or if a fuse has blown, that's an internal fault, not a network cut. Your smart meter display going blank can also be a useful indicator that you've lost supply from the network rather than just a single circuit.

In Accrington and across Lancashire, our engineers commonly find that what homeowners assume is a power cut is actually a tripped RCD (residual current device) caused by a faulty appliance. It's worth ruling out the simple things first before you start making calls. A two-minute check of your consumer unit can save you an hour on hold to the wrong organisation.

What Should I Do in the First Few Minutes After the Lights Go Out?

The first few minutes matter. Here's what our engineers recommend as soon as you lose power:

1. Stay calm and find a torch or use your phone's torch. Candles work but carry a fire risk, so keep them away from curtains and never leave them unattended.
2. Switch off and unplug sensitive appliances - computers, televisions, and anything with a motor or compressor. When the power comes back, it can briefly surge and damage electronics.
3. Leave one light switch in the "on" position so you know immediately when power has been restored.
4. Check your consumer unit. If a breaker has tripped, try resetting it once. If it trips again immediately, leave it alone - there's a reason it keeps tripping.
5. Note the time the power went out. This is useful for reporting the outage and for assessing food safety in your fridge later.
6. Let family members know what's happening, especially if anyone in the household depends on electrically powered medical equipment.

If you have a home alarm system, it will typically switch to battery backup. Make a note of anything that might need attention once power returns. Boilers, heating programmers, and smart home hubs all commonly need resetting after an outage.

Who Should I Call During a Power Cut in Accrington?

This trips people up more than you'd expect. There are two different numbers, and calling the wrong one wastes time.

For a network power cut - where the supply has failed between the national grid and your home - you need your local Distribution Network Operator (DNO). For homes in Accrington and the wider Lancashire area, that's Electricity North West. Their emergency line is 105, which is the national power cut number and works from any mobile or landline, including pay-as-you-go phones with no credit.

If you're not sure whether it's a network cut or an internal fault, call 105 first. They can quickly confirm whether there's a known outage in your area and give you an estimated restoration time. They can also log your property if it's not part of a wider outage, so your fault gets investigated separately.

Don't call your energy supplier - whether that's British Gas, Octopus, EDF, or anyone else - for a power cut. They bill you for energy but they don't own or maintain the cables that bring it to your home. Calling them will simply result in being redirected to 105 anyway. Save yourself the hold time and go straight to the right number.

How Long Does a Power Cut Typically Last?

The honest answer is that it depends entirely on the cause. Our engineers see everything from five-minute blips caused by automatic network switching to outages lasting twelve hours or more after severe weather damage to overhead lines.

Planned maintenance cuts are typically notified in advance by Electricity North West and usually last two to four hours. Unplanned outages from equipment failure are commonly resolved within one to three hours. Storm damage to overhead lines - which is more frequent in rural parts of Lancashire - can extend to several hours or overnight if the damage is extensive.

You can check live outage maps on the Electricity North West website or call 105 for updates. What many homeowners don't know is that if your power has been out for more than three hours, you may be entitled to compensation under Ofgem's guaranteed standards. For unplanned interruptions lasting over 12 hours, you can typically claim around 75 pounds from your DNO, with further payments for each additional extended period. Log your outage start time - it's the detail most people forget and then wish they had.

What Do I Do About Food in My Fridge and Freezer During a Power Cut?

Food safety is one of the most practical concerns during an extended outage. The key thing to understand is that your appliances are better at holding temperature than most people realise - but only if you keep the doors shut.

A fridge will typically maintain a safe temperature below 5 degrees Celsius for about four hours if you don't open it. A full chest freezer can stay below zero for up to 48 hours. An upright freezer, or one that's only half full, commonly manages around 24 hours. Every time you open the door to check things you speed up the warming process considerably, so resist the urge.

If the power has been out for more than four hours and your fridge temperature has risen above 5 degrees Celsius, the Food Standards Agency advises discarding anything that could spoil - raw meat, fish, dairy, and cooked leftovers in particular. Frozen food that has thawed above 4 degrees Celsius shouldn't be refrozen.

After prolonged outages in Accrington homes, our engineers occasionally get called in to check appliances that have been damaged by a surge when supply was restored. To reduce that risk, unplug your fridge and freezer during the outage and plug them back in once supply has been stable for a few minutes rather than the instant the lights come back on.

My Trip Switch Keeps Going - Is That the Same as a Power Cut?

No - and this distinction is really important. If your trip switch or RCD is tripping repeatedly, that's a fault inside your property, not a network power cut. Your supply from the grid is fine. Something in your home is causing the protection device to operate, and it's doing its job correctly by switching off.

The typical culprits are a faulty appliance drawing too much current, a wiring fault in a circuit, or a failing RCD that's becoming unreliable with age. The process to diagnose it yourself is methodical. Switch off and unplug everything on the affected circuit, reset the breaker, then add appliances back one at a time until the trip reoccurs. The last appliance you added before it tripped again is almost certainly the problem.

If the breaker trips even with nothing plugged in, or if you can't identify a faulty appliance through that process, you need a qualified electrician. Repeated tripping with no obvious cause can indicate a wiring fault that presents a genuine fire or electrocution risk. At Voltrade, our engineers use the GoFIX diagnostic tool to run systematic checks on your circuits, which means we can pinpoint the fault quickly rather than spending hours guessing. A circuit fault diagnosis in Lancashire typically costs between 80 and 150 pounds depending on the complexity of the installation.

What Should I Do When the Power Comes Back On?

The return of power isn't always the end of the story. Here's what our engineers advise for the moments after supply is restored:

1. Wait two to three minutes before plugging appliances back in. The supply can be slightly unstable immediately after restoration.
2. Reconnect appliances one at a time rather than all at once. This reduces the strain on your circuits and makes it easier to spot anything that isn't working properly.
3. Check your boiler. Many modern condensing boilers need to be manually reset after a power cut. Look for an error code on the display and consult your manual or the manufacturer's helpline.
4. Reset your clocks - microwave, oven, heating timer, and alarm clock. Pay particular attention to your heating programmer, which may have reverted to a default setting and could leave you without heating later in the day.
5. Check your consumer unit once more. If any breakers haven't reset themselves, try them manually. If one won't stay on, call an electrician rather than keep trying.

If individual sockets or circuits in your Accrington home aren't working after power is restored, it's possible a surge caused a component to fail. An electrician can test the affected circuits and replace any damaged parts. Don't assume it will sort itself out - unresolved faults don't improve with time.

Are There Safety Risks I Should Know About During a Power Cut?

There are, and a few of them are ones homeowners don't typically think about. Our engineers put these at the top of the list.

Carbon monoxide risk increases significantly when people start improvising heat sources. Using gas camping stoves, barbecues, or petrol generators indoors produces carbon monoxide - an odourless gas that can be fatal. Never use them inside, not even in a garage with the door open. Make sure your CO alarm is fitted with battery backup and test it regularly so you know it'll work when the mains power is off.

Candle fires are a real hazard during extended cuts. If you're using candles, keep them in stable holders well away from anything flammable, and never leave them burning while you sleep. A battery-powered LED lantern is a much safer option and now costs very little to buy.

If anyone in your household depends on electrically powered medical equipment - home oxygen concentrators, stair lifts, nebulisers, or similar - they should be registered on Electricity North West's Priority Services Register. This is a free service that means you'll receive advance warning of planned cuts and priority attention during unplanned outages. If you're in Accrington and not already registered, it's worth sorting now rather than waiting for an emergency.

When Do I Actually Need an Electrician Rather Than the Network Operator?

Getting this right saves both time and money. Call 105 and speak to Electricity North West when the problem is network-side - meaning your neighbours are also affected, or the supply to your meter is completely dead despite your internal wiring appearing intact.

Call a qualified electrician when the issue is inside your home. Specifically, you need an electrician when:

• Your consumer unit has tripped and you can't identify the cause by unplugging appliances
• A breaker won't stay on even with everything disconnected from the circuit
• You can smell burning or see scorch marks around sockets or the consumer unit
• Power has been restored to your street but your property still has no supply
• Individual sockets or circuits remain dead after the wider outage has ended
• Your meter reads zero but neighbouring properties have supply (this can indicate a fault in the service cable between the meter and the cut-out, which sits in a grey area between DNO and homeowner responsibility)

A call-out and basic investigation from a qualified electrician across Lancashire typically starts at around 80 to 120 pounds. If you're unsure whether your issue warrants a call-out, the Voltrade GoFIX tool can walk you through a structured checklist that sometimes resolves the problem without a visit at all.

How Can I Be Better Prepared for Future Power Cuts?

Preparation makes a power cut significantly less stressful. Our engineers recommend keeping these things ready well before you need them.

A battery-powered or wind-up torch is the single most useful item. Keep one in a consistent, easy-to-find spot - not buried in a drawer you'll need to search in the dark. A portable power bank for your phone means you can access 105, check outage maps, and stay in contact even if your charge runs low.

Know where your consumer unit is and understand how to reset the breakers. If you've recently moved into a property in Accrington and haven't checked the consumer unit yet, do it now when there's no emergency. If the circuits aren't labelled, label them - it takes twenty minutes and saves considerable confusion later.

Register for the Priority Services Register with Electricity North West if anyone in your home has a vulnerability, whether medical, age-related, or a disability. It's free, and the benefits during an outage are tangible. You can register directly through the Electricity North West website or by calling 105.

For extended preparedness, keep a small supply of non-perishable food, bottled water, and warm blankets at home, particularly through winter. A battery-powered DAB radio is useful for staying informed without running your phone battery down during a prolonged cut.

Final Thoughts

Most power cuts resolve without any action beyond a call to 105. The real skill is working out quickly whether you're dealing with a network issue or something inside your own home - because those two situations need completely different responses. If it's internal and you can't trace the fault yourself, don't keep resetting breakers and hoping for a different result. Get a qualified electrician to look at it properly. An undiagnosed electrical fault doesn't improve on its own, and the cost of finding it early is almost always less than the cost of dealing with the consequences later.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is 105 free to call during a power cut?

Yes, 105 is a free number available from any mobile or landline in the UK. It works even on pay-as-you-go mobiles with no credit remaining. Calling 105 connects you directly to your local Distribution Network Operator - for properties in Accrington, that's Electricity North West - who can confirm outages and log your fault.

Can I claim compensation if my power cut lasts more than 12 hours?

Yes. Under Ofgem's guaranteed standards of performance, you can typically claim around 75 pounds from your DNO for an unplanned interruption lasting over 12 hours, with further payments for each additional period the outage extends beyond that. You'll need to log your outage start time and submit a claim through your DNO's website or by phone.

Should I reset my consumer unit myself during a power cut?

You can reset a tripped breaker once to see if it holds. If it trips again immediately, or if there's any sign of burning smell or scorch marks near the consumer unit, leave it alone and call a qualified electrician. Repeatedly resetting a breaker that won't stay on can worsen an underlying fault and create a genuine safety risk in your home.

What's the difference between the consumer unit, the meter, and the incoming supply cable?

Your incoming supply cable runs from the street to your property and belongs to the DNO - it's their responsibility to repair. Your meter sits at the point where that cable enters your home and measures your usage. Your consumer unit contains the circuit breakers that protect your internal wiring. Electricians work on faults from the consumer unit inward; anything from the meter back toward the street falls under the DNO's remit.