Power cut lasting more than eight hours: compensation is automatic
The regulations issued by the Regulatory Authority for Energy, Networks and the Environment (ARERA), which come into force in 2024, provide for direct refunds on energy bills
Key points
The refund is triggered automatically if the power supply is not restored within 8 hours. No application is required: the credit will appear on the next bill 60 days after the outage, or 180 days if the disruption affects more than two million customers. If the compensation is not paid within the specified time limits, the customer may lodge a complaint within 8 months of the blackout. At that point, the distributor must pay the refund (or provide reasons for rejecting the claim) within 3 months.
The regulations of the Regulatory Authority for Energy, Networks and the Environment (ARERA), which come into force in 2024, have abolished the previous distinction between large, medium and small municipalities. Compensation remains differentiated by type of customer and increases with the duration of the outage. If power is temporarily restored and a second blackout within an hour, the two incidents are considered as a single outage: the total duration is calculated by adding together at least the periods of actual disruption.
Types and amounts
For households and small non-domestic users with a power rating of up to 6.6 kW, once consumption exceeds 8 hours, the basic compensation is 34.50 euros, which increases by 17.25 euros for every additional 4 hours, with no upper limit. For medium-sized non-domestic customers (between 6.6 and 16.5 kW), the amounts are five times higher: starting at €172.50, plus €86.25 for every subsequent 4 hours, again with no upper limit. For larger customers, the compensation is proportional to power output. Low-voltage customers exceeding 16.5 kW receive €2.30 per kW, with increments of €1.15 per kW every 4 hours, up to a maximum of €10,000. Medium-voltage customers receive a lower unit compensation rate (€1.725/kW) but with more frequent increments (€0.862/kW every 2 hours) and a higher cap of €40,000. For energy producers, the base rate is 0.172 euro/kW plus 0.086 euro/kW every 4 hours, up to a limit of 10,000 euro.
The Excluded
There are few situations in which the refund is not payable. For example, it does not apply to those who are in arrears with their payments and, for medium-voltage connections, to those without a valid declaration of system compliance. No compensation is payable either when the power cut results from documented theft, from scheduled disconnections notified by Terna in advance or ordered for the safety of the national electricity grid, or when the amount is less than 30 euros.
For medium-voltage connections, automatic compensation is also payable if the maximum annual number of (unannounced) power cuts is exceeded, regardless of their duration, provided they last longer than one second. This excludes outages caused by force majeure, those attributable to the customer, or those already reimbursed due to their prolonged duration. Compensation is triggered once the number of outages exceeds 6 per year in municipalities with more than 50,000 inhabitants, 9 in towns with between 5,000 and 50,000 inhabitants, and 10 in those with fewer than 5,000 residents. From 2027, the limit will be the same for everyone: 8 outages per year.
