Find the cause of your outage

Troubleshoot your power outage to find out if it is caused by something on your property.

Unplanned power outages can occur at any time. When an unplanned outage happens, it may be due to a fault on the MainPower network or it might be caused by an issue on your property.

Scroll down for some tips to check if the outage might be caused by something on your property.

We’re here to help. Get in touch if you need help. Or, check out our FAQs.

Unexpected power outage?

Here are some tips to help you diagnose the cause of an outage:

  1. Check the MainPower outage map. Find out if your area is affected by a current power outage.
  2. Check the main switch is on at your switchboard. If a fuse is blown, then the problem is likely in your home and you may require a call-out from an electrician.
  3. Check if your neighbours have power. If multiple houses in your area are without power or hot water, it is likely the outage is linked to a problem on our network.
  4. Find out if it is a planned or unplanned outage. Check our outage map for all current planned and unplanned outages. The map will tell you if we have listed an outage for scheduled work or a known fault in your area.

Planned outages

Your electricity retailer is responsible for telling you about upcoming planned power outages.

If you were not notified about a power outage affecting your property, contact your electricity retailer and confirm that your details are correct.

For more information about how to manage during a power outage, visit our Prepare for an Outage page.

If you feel that your health is at risk due to a power outage, call 111 or get to a hospital.

Call our 24-hour faults line if you need to report an outage not listed. In an emergency, call 111.

We’re here to help

If you need some assistance or advice, please get in touch with our team.

Important notifications

Hot water load testing under way ahead of winter

Until mid‑April, we’re working closely with retailers to carry out hot water load testing as we prepare our network for the coming winter season.

These tests run for a couple of hours each day, Monday to Friday, with no testing taking place over weekends. Because each test window is relatively short, customers are unlikely to notice any changes to their hot water supply.

The purpose of this work is to help us better understand how much controllable load is available during the summer months. Gaining accurate insights now means we can model customer savings more effectively by reducing system load at peak times. It also helps us assess whether this load flexibility could assist Transpower in deferring an upcoming local transmission upgrade.

This testing is an important part of ensuring a resilient, efficient network that supports our community.

MainPower Trust elections

Voting is open for the 2026 MainPower Trust election.

Voting packs have been emailed or posted by Electionz.com to everyone who pays a power bill on the MainPower network. You need to have the unique ID provided to cast your vote.

If you haven’t received a voting pack, or can’t find it, you can get a replacement by contacting iro@electionz.com.  For full details of the candidates, visit mainpowertrust.co.nz/trustee-elections/

Make the most of this opportunity to have your say on the future of MainPower – and your community.

Voting closes midday Friday 6 March 2026. 

Privacy Policy

Unplanned outage

Fault – Hanmer Springs / Lewis Pass
MainPower is aware of a fault affecting the Hanmer Springs and Lewis Pass areas. Our crews are currently on site at the fault location. Restoration is estimated to be early this evening.
We will continue to provide updates as more information becomes available. Please treat any fallen or damaged lines as live and maintain a 10 meter distance.

Is your outage not listed?

Troubleshoot your outage
Treat all lines as live during the outage period; power may be restored at any time. If you require further information, please call MainPower’s 24-hour faults line. To report an emergency, call 111.

Outage notifications

Hot water load testing under way ahead of winter

Until mid‑April, we’re working closely with retailers to carry out hot water load testing as we prepare our network for the coming winter season.

These tests run for a couple of hours each day, Monday to Friday, with no testing taking place over weekends. Because each test window is relatively short, customers are unlikely to notice any changes to their hot water supply.

The purpose of this work is to help us better understand how much controllable load is available during the summer months. Gaining accurate insights now means we can model customer savings more effectively by reducing system load at peak times. It also helps us assess whether this load flexibility could assist Transpower in deferring an upcoming local transmission upgrade.

This testing is an important part of ensuring a resilient, efficient network that supports our community.

MainPower Trust elections

Voting is open for the 2026 MainPower Trust election.

Voting packs have been emailed or posted by Electionz.com to everyone who pays a power bill on the MainPower network. You need to have the unique ID provided to cast your vote.

If you haven’t received a voting pack, or can’t find it, you can get a replacement by contacting iro@electionz.com.  For full details of the candidates, visit mainpowertrust.co.nz/trustee-elections/

Make the most of this opportunity to have your say on the future of MainPower – and your community.

Voting closes midday Friday 6 March 2026. 

Privacy Policy

Unplanned outage

Fault – Hanmer Springs / Lewis Pass
MainPower is aware of a fault affecting the Hanmer Springs and Lewis Pass areas. Our crews are currently on site at the fault location. Restoration is estimated to be early this evening.
We will continue to provide updates as more information becomes available. Please treat any fallen or damaged lines as live and maintain a 10 meter distance.

Is your outage not listed?

Troubleshoot your outage
Treat all lines as live during the outage period; power may be restored at any time. If you require further information, please call MainPower’s 24-hour faults line. To report an emergency, call 111.

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