National Grid to Carry Out Safety Inspections in Liskeard from 15th September

National Grid Electricity Distribution (NGED) has announced that customers in and around Liskeard will be receiving property visits starting next week as part of a major safety inspection programme.

What’s Happening and When

From 15th September, domestic and small business customers in the PL14 postcode, which includes Liskeard, Dobwalls and Pensilva, can expect visits from NGED-approved contractors.

Inspectors will be checking service termination points, also known as cut-outs. This is the indoor location where the main incoming electricity service cable and fuse is situated, usually near the electricity meter. In modern homes built since the 1980s, this is often found in an outside meter cabinet.

The inspections are visual only. Contractors will record details, take photos, and confirm equipment condition. There will be no disassembly work and customers’ power supplies will not be interrupted.

Why These Safety Checks Are Important

NGED is required by Ofgem to carry out inspections of low voltage cut-outs to ensure they remain safe. The company plans to complete 400,000 inspections every year across the Midlands, South West and South Wales as part of a rolling 20-year programme.

Richard Brady, NGED’s Policy Engineer leading the inspections, said:

“The UK is recognised internationally as having one of the most resilient and safe energy systems and this inspection programme underlines our commitment to the highest safety standards.

Inspectors will visually examine cut-outs to check they are working as they should, taking photos and notes for our records. In the unlikely event of a defective cut-out being found, NGED engineers will be sent to carry out repairs at no cost to the customer.

Visits will also be an opportunity to confirm what types of low-carbon technologies (LCT) are connected to our network, for example electric vehicle chargers and solar panels, to help our planning for future load growth on the network, and enable LCT items to be connected quicker in the future as we will have records of the cut-out asset on site and its condition.

These are important safety visits but we understand they could be inconvenient for customers and apologise in advance if this is the case.”

Who Will Be Knocking at the Door

The inspections will be carried out by Calisen, working on behalf of NGED. All inspectors will carry proper identification and authorisation to enter properties.

For those who prefer not to have a visit, customers have the option of photographing their cut-out and meter themselves and sending the images to NGED, who will then decide if a follow-up inspection is necessary.

Full details of the programme are available here: NGED Customer Guide on Cut-Out Inspections.

Background

Ofgem has moved responsibility for cut-out inspections away from smart meter operators and placed it with distribution network operators such as NGED. While failures of cut-outs are rare, DNOs are now responsible for the equipment and aim to collect evidence if faults occur to improve system safety.

Details of NGED’s access arrangements can be found here: NGED Access to Premises Information.

National Grid operates the electricity transmission network in England and Wales and distributes power to eight million customers. The company invests around £1 billion a year into its network. It is not a supply company and does not bill customers. Distribution costs make up around 10 per cent of an annual electricity bill, about £100 a year or 27p a day.

In case of a power cut, customers are reminded to call 105, a free service available 24/7.