The Post

Don’t let outages fry your appliances

WYNAND VAN VUUREN Van Vuuren is King Price Insurance’s client experience partner.

LOAD SHEDDING is hitting South African consumers right in their pockets. King Price has seen a 100% increase in the number of claims for damage caused to appliances due to power surges since the onset of load shedding.

With Eskom’s troubles, things are only going to get worse. King Price Insurance has settled more than R21 million in claims between August 21 and April 23 alone for damage sustained through power surges and dips affecting residential buildings, home contents and portable possessions. This figure excludes lightning-related and large commercial claims.

We’re getting a massive number of claims for “fried” computer equipment, fridges, TVs and even distribution boards caused by power surges.

But there are several steps you can take to avoid having to replace your expensive appliances:

Unplug your appliances: The easiest, cheapest and most effective way of protecting your appliances is simply to unplug them when you’re not using them, or when the power goes off. That way, you’re 100% protected from power surges.

Install surge protection: The most effective surge protectors are connected directly to your distribution board by a qualified electrician. These protectors divert any excess power into a grounding wire. Another option is to use surge protector strips on all your plugs, which provides a certain level of protection against surges caused by the power coming back on after an outage, or by lightning strikes.

Install a UPS system: UPS (uninterruptible power supply) systems can go a long way towards protecting your most valuable appliances. A UPS enables your appliances to shut down properly when the power goes off, and it will protect them from the power surges that often occur when the power comes back on.

Use alternative power supplies safely: Alternative power supplies must comply with safety guidelines, and they must be installed by a registered electrician.

Portable generators are relatively cheap and easy to operate but must be correctly linked to your power supply. Simply plugging a generator into a house plug is known as back-feeding and it’s not only dangerous, it may result in any damage not being covered by your insurer.

Check your insurance: It’s important to check your home contents insurance to see if you’re covered for damage from power surges. In general, consumers should be able to claim these damages directly from their municipality, but this is not always viable. If you’re insured for electrical damage due to power surges and dips, you can claim directly from your insurer, who will then claim from the municipality on your behalf.

Winter Safety Post

en-za

2023-05-31T07:00:00.0000000Z

2023-05-31T07:00:00.0000000Z

https://thepostza.pressreader.com/article/281852942949991

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