Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether she plans to review the compensation available to households and businesses impacted by electricity outages.

Ofgem sets the Quality of Service Guaranteed Standards that must be met by each electricity network company. These standards have been set to a level of service that it is reasonable to expect companies to deliver in all cases. Customers are entitled to compensation if distribution companies fail to meet the service standards required.

The current compensation rules were set in April 2023 for the duration of the current price control for electricity Distribution Network Operators (RIIO-ED2, 1 April 2023 – 31 March 2028).

Ofgem are developing the next five-year price control (RIIO-ED3 running 2028-2033) and will review their compensation arrangements as a part of this process.