Power failures, damaged equipment and network faults in Eskom-supplied areas are reported to the Eskom National Call Centre. If your supplier is your municipality rather than Eskom, the report goes to the municipality instead.
Eskom fault reporting contact number
| National Call Centre | 0860 037 566, also shown as 08600 ESKOM |
| Western Cape supply area | 0860 037 566, [email protected], or SMS 35328 |
| Report fraud, corruption and illegal activities | 0800 112 722 |
Sources: eskom.co.za and capetown.gov.za.
Have this ready
Eskom asks callers to have their account number, meter number, pole number, address details and contact details on hand.
The pole number matters more than people expect. It is marked on the electricity pole nearest your property and lets Eskom locate your connection on the network directly, rather than working from an address. Read it off before you call if you can do so safely.
What to describe
- Whether only your property is affected or the whole street
- Whether you can see visible damage, such as a fallen line, a leaning pole or a burnt meter box
- Whether there was a bang, flash or smell of burning
- When the supply failed
A whole-street outage usually indicates a network fault. If only your property is affected, the problem may be at your connection, your meter or your own distribution board, which affects who is responsible for the repair.
Outage or load shedding
Before reporting, check whether the outage matches a published load shedding schedule for your area. Load shedding is planned and does not need reporting, and reporting it adds volume to a call centre that other people need. If your power stays off well beyond the scheduled slot, that is worth reporting as a fault.
Safety
Treat every fallen or low-hanging power line as live. Keep people and animals well clear, do not attempt to move it, and report it immediately as an emergency rather than a routine fault. The same applies to an open substation, a sparking meter box or a pole that has been damaged in a collision.
Related pages
- Eskom contact details
- Eskom power outage contact number
- Eskom customer care number
- Municipal electricity fault contact number
FAQs
- What number do I call to report an Eskom fault? The National Call Centre on 0860 037 566.
- Should I report load shedding? No. It is planned. Report it only if your power stays off well beyond the scheduled slot.
- There is a fallen power line in my street. Treat it as live, keep everyone clear and report it immediately as an emergency.