Burning, crackling or a damaged line? Keep away
Burn marks, a strange smell or a crackling sound at the switchboard mean hands off: ENA's advice is to contact your local lines company straight away. If the line to your house is down or a pole is leaning, keep at least 10 metres back (about a bus length, as Powerco puts it), call 111, then call the lines company.
Who owns what
| Who usually owns it | Who to call | |
|---|---|---|
| Lines, poles and cables up to your boundary | The lines company | The lines company's fault line |
| The service line (mains) from the boundary to your house | You, the property owner | An electrician, once it's safe |
| Poles on your land that carry your service line | You, on many networks | An electrician, or the contractor your lines company approves |
| The meter | Your power company (retailer) | Your retailer |
| The meter board and switchboard | Part of your home's installation | An electrician |
Where your side starts
Vector says it generally owns the lines and equipment up to the point of supply, usually an isolating fuse on the boundary or the nearest pole, and the owner has the service line from there to the meter. Powerco, Electra, PowerNet and Network Tasman describe the same split in their own words, so check your own lines company's page for the detail.
Who may work on that line varies. On Electra's network, service line work should be done by an Electra-approved contractor. Aurora Energy reminds owners that low-voltage lines and poles on their land are theirs too, and recommends having them inspected every five years.
Trees are the other owner's job. Vector notes that the tree regulations cover its network lines, not your own service line, so keeping branches off the line to your house is up to you. Several lines companies, Electra among them, offer a safety disconnection so an arborist can work near it.
Mains work and the paperwork
In the EWRB's risk levels, mains work is high-risk work. A new or replaced service main gets a Certificate of Compliance, an independent inspection by a licensed electrical inspector with a Record of Inspection, and an Electrical Safety Certificate. Your electrician arranges the inspector.
Not everything at the board is high-risk. Repairing or replacing faulty mains fittings on existing work, such as the main switch or main fuse, is treated as low-risk and doesn't need an inspection. A good electrician tells you up front which category your job falls into.
Meter changes and smart meters
The meter is your retailer's. If it needs replacing, moving or upgrading, for solar, a new tariff or a supply change, the request goes through your retailer, and an electrician handles any wiring on your side. Network Waitaki, for example, sends its customers to their retailer for metering, smart meters and final readings.
When a meter board is replaced, the electrician and the retailer's metering provider need to line up their visits, so ask early who's coordinating.
Signs the meter board needs work
Scorching around the meter or fuse holders, a board that's cracked, rotten or pulling away from the wall, no room for a new meter, or a supply upgrade for an EV charger, a heat pump or solar. If the board is outside and exposed, check for water getting behind it after heavy rain, from the ground, without touching anything.
What you can do, and what's licensed work
You can
- Keep trees on your land clear of the line to your house, using an arborist who's qualified to work near lines.
- Keep the area in front of the meter board clear so it can be read and reached.
- Ask your retailer about meter faults, smart meters or meter changes.
- Tell an electrician about a leaning pole or a sagging line on your land before it fails.
Leave to a licensed electrician
- Any work on the meter board, switchboard or service main. WorkSafe's homeowner rules never cover meter box or switchboard work.
- Repairing a damaged service line, and arranging a disconnection to do it safely.
- Replacing a faulty main switch or main fuse.
- Applying to the lines company for a supply change.
What a good quote for mains or meter board work covers
- Whether the job is high-risk work, and who the inspector will be.
- Who contacts the lines company and the retailer, and in what order.
- How long the power will be off, and on which day.
- Where the new service line will run, and how it's protected.
- The certificates you'll get: a CoC and an ESC, plus a Record of Inspection where it's needed.
Our view
We'd find out where your lines company draws the line, literally, before anything goes wrong: read its page and look at the pole or fuse at your boundary. If your service line runs overhead through trees, we'd keep them cut back every year. And if the meter board shows any scorching, we'd have it looked at now, not after the next storm.
Want a specialist to sort it?
Tell us the job and your postcode. We match the licence-checked local electrician who does this kind of work, and they call you. No ring-around, and your number goes to them alone.