Lightning, Power Surges and Your Appliances: What Gets Damaged and Who Pays

Does a power surge really destroy appliances, and who pays when it does? Yes. A big enough voltage spike can wreck the electronics in everything from your TV to your heat pump in a fraction of a second. Who pays depends on where the surge came from: your own insurer covers most lightning and storm related damage, and if the surge started on the network you can lodge a compensation claim with your electricity distributor.

⚡ Quick Answers: power surges and appliance damage

• What causes power surges in Sydney? Lightning strikes on or near powerlines, network switching and faults, storm damage to lines, and a broken neutral on your own service.
• What gets damaged first? Anything with a circuit board: TVs, routers, solar inverters, EV chargers, induction cooktops and appliance control boards.
• Will a powerboard protect my house? No. A surge protected powerboard only shields what is plugged into it and does nothing for hardwired appliances.
• Does home insurance cover surge damage? Usually, under storm, lightning or fusion cover, but limits and excesses vary between policies.
• Can I claim against Ausgrid or Endeavour Energy? You can lodge a claim if the network caused the damage. The distributor assesses whether it was at fault, so payment is not automatic.
• What should I do straight after a surge? Unplug sensitive gear, photograph any damage and book an electrical inspection before assuming everything survived.

1. Where surges actually come from

A direct lightning strike on a house is rare. What happens far more often in a Sydney summer storm is a strike on or near the network. That spike travels down the powerlines and arrives at every home on the street at once, which is why one storm can produce a wave of dead modems and inverters across a whole suburb.

Not every surge involves weather. Network switching operations, a car hitting a pole and equipment faults can all send spikes through the system. So can a broken neutral on your own service, which lets the voltage inside your home swing well above 230 volts instead of holding steady. If your lights have been going bright and dim before appliances start failing, read that guide today rather than waiting for the next storm.

2. What a surge damages first

Surges kill electronics before they kill anything else. The victims are the circuit boards that now live in nearly everything: TVs, routers, garage door openers, dishwashers, ovens, air conditioners, heat pump hot water controllers, EV chargers and solar inverters. A surge can also shorten the life of motor windings in fridges and pool pumps without killing them on the day, which is why some appliances limp along for weeks after a storm and then fail.

The frustrating part is that the damage is often invisible. The appliance simply never turns on again, or starts behaving strangely, and there is nothing to photograph except a dead screen. That is why the paper trail matters so much when it comes to claims.

3. Why the cheap powerboard does not save you

A surge protected powerboard is better than nothing for the gear plugged into it, but it has three real limits. It only protects that one point, it wears out silently after absorbing smaller surges, and it does nothing at all for hardwired appliances like your oven, air conditioner, hot water system or EV charger.

Whole house surge protection works differently. Surge protective devices are fitted in the switchboard so the spike is clamped where the power enters the home, before it reaches any circuit. Our whole house surge protection guide covers the options in detail, and the second layer of point of use protection for sensitive electronics is covered in this guide to protecting your electronics. Surge devices are most economical to add during a switchboard upgrade, when the board is already open and being worked on.

4. Who pays: your home insurance

Most building and contents policies cover damage caused by lightning and storms, and many cover fusion, which is the burning out of an electric motor. The details vary a lot between policies, so check your product disclosure statement rather than assuming. Insurers commonly ask for evidence of the event and the damage, so keep the dead appliance, photograph everything, note the date and time of the storm, and get an electrician's report confirming the likely cause. We prepare these reports regularly as part of an electrical safety inspection after storm events.

5. Who pays: a network compensation claim

If the surge started on the distributor's side, you can lodge a claim directly with the network business instead of, or alongside, your insurer. Both Ausgrid and Endeavour Energy have claims processes for property damage connected to their networks. They assess each claim on its facts, including whether the network acted reasonably, so an approved payout is not guaranteed, but genuine cases do get paid and it costs nothing to lodge.

Your claim goes to whichever distributor owns the wires in your street. If you are not sure which one that is, check your network area in seconds with our postcode checker. For the wider picture of who is responsible for what after a storm, our storm damage responsibility guide breaks down the three way split between the network, your insurer and you.

6. What to do straight after a surge

Unplug sensitive electronics until the storm passes, then reset a tripped safety switch once. If it will not hold, leave it off and get help. If you smell burning, see scorch marks at the switchboard or have lost power in part of the house, treat it as urgent and call us for an emergency make safe. Visible damage to the line between the street and your roof is storm damage repair work that our Level 2 team handles, and our guide to Sydney's storm season explains why these events cluster between November and March.

How High Demand Electrical helps

We are a Sydney Level 2 electrician, so we handle the full chain after a surge event: emergency make safe, repairs to damaged service lines and consumer mains, switchboard repairs, whole house surge protection installed during switchboard upgrades, and written inspection reports you can attach to an insurance or network claim. One crew, one report, no waiting on three different trades.

Power Surge Damage FAQs (Sydney)

Can a single surge really destroy multiple appliances at once?

Yes. The spike arrives on every circuit at the same moment, so it is common to lose a TV, a router and an inverter together while older, simpler appliances survive.

Is surge damage always immediate?

No. Smaller surges degrade electronics over time, and a stressed motor or board can fail weeks after the storm that damaged it.

Do solar inverters need their own surge protection?

Inverters are among the most expensive items to lose and among the most exposed. Surge protection at the switchboard shields the whole installation, and we assess the solar side as part of any safety inspection.

Who do I call if my whole street was hit?

Report the outage to your distributor first, then deal with damage inside your home. Our guide to emergency contact numbers lists who to ring and when.

Protect your appliances before the next storm

Get a switchboard upgrade quote and have whole house surge protection fitted while the board is open, or talk to us about an inspection after a storm. Call 0402 559 777. Every job starts with a site assessment so we can confirm scope and pricing before work begins.