Standard compensations

For long power outages, standard compensation is paid. According to the Electricity Market Act, the electricity user is entitled to receive standard compensation when they have been continuously without electricity for at least 12 hours. The amount of the standard compensation depends on the user’s annual network service fee and the continuous duration of the outage.

The compensation outage time starts from when the fault becomes known to the electricity company and ends when the fault has been repaired. If the safety of the repair crew is at risk, the calculation of the outage time will start only when the repair in the field can be safely started. In addition, the calculation of the outage time starts over if the electricity has been on for at least two consecutive hours. If the interruption in electricity supply is due to a fault in the transmission or regional network, the network company is not obliged to pay standard compensation to its customers.

For a user, the total amount of standard compensation paid during a calendar year for interruptions in network service is at most 200 percent of the annual transmission service fee. Starting from 1 January 2018, the maximum amount of standard compensation payable for a single interruption in network service is €2000.

We can see directly from our monitoring systems which customers are entitled to standard compensation. To receive the standard compensation, the customer does not need to separately contact the electricity company. According to the Electricity Market Act, the electricity company has six months to pay the standard compensation.