Whose Pole Is That? How to Tell a Private Power Pole From a Network Pole in 30 Seconds

How do you tell whether a power pole is yours or the network's? Check three things: where the pole stands, what it feeds, and what markings it carries. A pole inside your property boundary that feeds only your home is almost certainly a private power pole, which means maintaining it is your responsibility. A pole on the footpath or verge carrying wires to several houses belongs to Ausgrid or Endeavour Energy.

⚡ Quick Answers: Private vs Network Poles

• What is a private power pole? A pole on private property that carries the electricity service from the network to a home or acreage. The property owner owns and maintains it.
• What is the fastest tell? Position. Inside your boundary usually means private. On the footpath, verge or road reserve means network.
• What does each type feed? A private pole feeds one property, or a small group along a shared driveway. Network poles feed multiple properties and often carry street lighting.
• Who fixes a private pole? A Level 2 ASP, at the owner's cost. Network poles are repaired by the distributor at no direct cost to you.
• Not sure which network you are on? Check your network area in seconds with our postcode checker.

1. Check where it stands

This settles most cases on its own. Distributors run their poles along road reserves, footpaths and verges. If the pole is standing inside your fence line, in the garden, beside the driveway or partway up an acreage block, it is almost certainly private. The network built its line to the street; someone later paid for that pole to get power the rest of the way in.

2. Check what it feeds

Follow the wires. A network pole carries the street mains, usually serving several houses, and often a street light or larger equipment like a pole-top transformer. A private pole typically carries a single service line heading to one house, garage or shed. On battleaxe blocks and shared driveways, one private pole can serve a small group of neighbours, and in that case the responsibility is shared between them.

3. Look for the markings

Network poles generally carry the distributor's identification markings, such as a pole number plate, so crews can find them. Private poles usually carry no distributor ID. Some carry an installer's tag or an inspection sticker instead, which is itself a strong clue that a private owner has been maintaining it.

4. Follow the line from the street

The wire from the network's last pole lands at your point of attachment, and everything on your side of that point is yours, including any private pole holding it up. If you want the full picture of where the boundary sits, our point of attachment explainer walks through it without the jargon.

Why the answer matters

Ownership decides who inspects it, who fixes it and who pays. Private poles age quietly: rot at the ground line in timber, rust in steel, and rising loads on hardware that was installed decades ago. If a distributor inspector finds a problem on a private pole, the owner gets a defect notice with a deadline, which is exactly what happened to the readers of our Ausgrid pole defect notice guide. Knowing the pole is yours before it fails, or before a storm tests it, puts you ahead of the letter. Our private power pole guide covers the whole ownership story, and the warning signs guide shows what to look for once you know it is yours.

Why it's Level 2 ASP work

Private poles carry live network-connected conductors, so repairing, replacing or relocating one is not ordinary electrical work. It requires a Level 2 Accredited Service Provider authorised to work on service lines and, where needed, to disconnect and reconnect the supply. If a tree comes down on any pole, private or network, treat everything as live, stay well clear and start with our tree falls on power pole emergency guide.

How High Demand Electrical helps

We inspect, repair and replace private power poles across Sydney as private power pole installation specialists, and we clear pole defect notices through our defect notice rectification service. If you are still not sure whose pole you are looking at, send us a photo and we will tell you. For deeper pole-specific resources, our dedicated site HD Power Pole Sydney covers materials, costs and timelines in detail.

Private Power Pole FAQs (Sydney)

Can one pole serve two properties?

Yes. Shared private poles are common along shared driveways and battleaxe subdivisions. Maintenance responsibility is shared by the owners it serves, which is worth clarifying with your neighbour before anything needs fixing.

The pole is on my land but has a numbered plate. Whose is it?

Occasionally network assets do sit inside private land under easements. If a pole carries distributor identification markings, contact the distributor before assuming it is yours, and check your property's easement documents.

Who do I call if a private pole is leaning or damaged?

A Level 2 ASP, not the distributor. If it is an emergency, wires are down or the pole looks like failing, keep everyone at least 8 metres away and call us on 0402 559 777, any hour. See emergency make safe for what happens next.

How often should a private pole be checked?

Regularly, and always after major storms. A quick visual check for lean, rot, rust and hardware damage costs nothing, and a professional inspection catches what you cannot see from the ground.

Not sure whose pole it is?

Get a private power pole inspection or installation quote from High Demand Electrical, or call 0402 559 777. Every job starts with a site assessment so scope and pricing are confirmed before work begins.