Is a Fallen Power Pole Covered by Home & Contents Insurance in Sydney?

Finding out your private power pole has come down in a storm is stressful. Finding out it's on your property and it's your responsibility to replace is even worse. The good news: most Sydney home and contents policies cover fallen private power poles — but only under certain conditions. Here's what to know before you call your insurer.

First things first: it's your pole

The private power pole on your property belongs to you, not the network. Ausgrid and Endeavour Energy own the street-side poles and cables up to your property boundary. Anything past that — including the pole, the service cable to your house, and the hardware — is yours to maintain, repair, and replace.

What's usually covered

Most major insurers' home (building) policies in Australia cover private power poles as a permanent improvement, in the same bucket as fences, sheds, and garden walls. Typical covered events:

• Storm damage — fallen or broken poles from high winds, lightning, or heavy rain
• Impact — vehicle strikes, fallen trees, fallen branches
• Fire — pole destroyed or weakened by bushfire or lightning strike
• Flood — subject to flood cover specifically being included in your policy

Coverage usually includes the pole itself, the service cable, hardware, new concrete footing if needed, and the cost of network paperwork.

What's usually NOT covered

• Wear and tear — the pole was going to fall eventually because it had rotted or rusted through. Most insurers exclude this explicitly.
• Gradual deterioration — same as above: rust, rot, subsidence over years.
• Lack of maintenance — if you'd received a defect notice and ignored it, the claim may be denied.
• Poles under construction — if the pole was being installed or modified when it failed.

The practical test insurers apply: was this caused by a sudden event, or by slow degradation? Sudden event = usually covered. Slow degradation = usually not.

What a claim actually pays

A typical private power pole replacement costs between $5,500 and $12,000 in Sydney. After excess (usually $500–$1,500 on a standard home policy), insurers pay the remainder. If the event also damaged your service cable, meter box, switchboard, or internal wiring, those are typically bundled into the same claim.

Documentation you'll need

1. Photos of the pole down — take them before anything is moved. From multiple angles. Include surroundings that show the cause (fallen tree, flooding, etc.).
2. Photos of any secondary damage — cracked meter boxes, damaged roof, pulled-out service cable.
3. A written report from a Level 2 electrician — confirming cause of failure, what needs replacing, and that it was a sudden event. Insurers take our reports as evidence.
4. Itemised quote for repair or replacement.
5. Weather records — if storm-caused, a BOM report or news article helps confirm the event.
6. Maintenance history (if you have any) — previous inspection reports help prove the pole was not neglected.

The process, step by step

1. Call the network first (Ausgrid 13 13 88 or Endeavour Energy 13 10 03) to isolate any live hazard.
2. Take photos before anything is touched.
3. Call a licensed Level 2 electrician to make safe, produce a report, and quote.
4. Call your insurer to lodge the claim, armed with photos and the electrician's report.
5. Get claim approval, schedule the replacement, and pay your excess.

Common claim mistakes

• Cleaning up or moving the pole before taking photos. Lose the photo evidence and the claim gets much harder.
• Hiring an unlicensed contractor. Insurers will only pay for work done by a licensed Level 2 electrician.
• Missing the defect notice. If you had an active defect notice, the insurer may reduce or deny the claim.
• Using "wear and tear" language in your claim wording. Describe the event (tree fell, lightning strike, 100 km/h winds) rather than the state of the pole.

We help with insurance jobs every week

Most of our storm-damage work is insurance-backed. We write insurer-ready reports, photograph everything, coordinate with your claims handler, and get you back on grid as quickly as possible. In most cases you'll only pay your excess.

Start a pole-claim site visit →