Service lines
Looking after your service line
The power line from the street to your house is called a service line, which can be overhead or underground.
Here are some top tips about maintaining your service line.
Who’s responsible for the service line?
Property owners are responsible for the power lines, poles and underground cables that supply electricity from our network to their property.
In most cases, the service line starts at the property boundary.
Shared service lines
If the service line is shared between one or more properties, then safety and maintenance is a shared responsibility between neighbours.
Sometimes, it can be challenging to determine the exact point where ownership and responsibility transfer from Waipā Networks to the property owner. If you’re unsure, please contact us.
Maintaining your service lines
Please contact us if your service line has leaning poles, low-hanging lines, crooked cross arms, or signs of damage.
- frayed or sagging lines break easily, especially in high winds
- look for signs of rotten wood on crossarms, and check whether your poles are rotting at the base
- keep trees away from power lines – they can cause anything from flickering to a total power outage
- check the point where the service line enters your house – is the line old, repaired or frayed?
Unsafe service lines
Property owners should regularly check service lines and service poles.
If you’re concerned about their condition, please contact us or your electrician to assess the need for repairs before the situation becomes dangerous and expensive.
We regularly carry out safety inspections on our network. If we find unsafe service lines, we’ll contact the property owner and let them know what work is needed to make them safe.
Damaged service line?
If the damage to your service line is near the point of entry (the connection point where the line attaches to your building), your electrician can help.
If you have damage to the line and poles on your property, please get in touch with us.