Who Is Responsible for the Service Cable Between Your Pole and Your House?

One of the most common misunderstandings we hear from Sydney homeowners is about the service cable — that wire running from the power pole to the meter box on your house. People often assume "the wires belong to Ausgrid, right?" Not quite. For properties with a private power pole, a surprising amount of that cable is yours — and knowing where the boundary sits matters for repairs, insurance, and safety.

The basic ownership rule

The line between network responsibility and your responsibility is called the point of supply or point of attachment. Everything on the network side is their problem and their cost. Everything on your side is yours.

For private pole setups in Sydney, the point of supply is almost always at the top of the private pole — where the network's service cable connects to your private pole's hardware. That means:

• Network owns: street poles, overhead mains, network transformers, and the service cable from the street to the top of your private pole.
• You own: your private pole, the hardware on it, and the service cable running from the top of your pole to your meter box.

Where people get confused

Older homes without private poles have service cables that run directly from the street to the house. In that setup, almost everything is network-owned. Because those arrangements are more common, many homeowners assume it's the same on their private-pole property. It's not.

If you have a private pole, you're effectively running your own mini power infrastructure on your land — and every wire from pole to house is your responsibility.

What's included in "your" service cable

• The overhead cable (or underground consumer mains) running from the pole to the meter box
• Insulators and hardware at the house end
• The point where the cable enters the wall or conduit
• Any joins, splices, or drop-down fittings between pole and meter

If any part of this fails — frays, sags, sparks, shorts — it's yours to fix.

What maintenance does the service cable need?

More than most people think. We see regular failures from:

• UV damage — sun cracks the outer sheath after 20+ years
• Tree rubbing — branches that brush the cable slowly wear through insulation
• Bird strike, cockatoo damage — yes, really, cockatoos chew cables
• Corrosion — especially near the coast or in salt-air zones
• Low sag — the cable slowly stretches over decades and may drop below the legal clearance

A good Level 2 electrician will check the service cable during any pole inspection. It takes 5 extra minutes and flags 80% of the problems that cause unplanned outages.

What if a tree branch takes out my service cable?

Call the network first on 13 13 88 (Ausgrid) or 13 10 03 (Endeavour Energy). They'll isolate the street side so nothing is live. Then call a Level 2 electrician to replace your side of the cable. If the damage was caused by a sudden event (storm, fallen tree), your home insurance usually covers the replacement.

Can I get a tradie to replace it?

No. Only a licensed Level 2 electrician can legally work on your service cable. Any other sparkie — including a general electrician — isn't authorised. This is a safety rule, not a red-tape one: the cable is live at 240V/415V and connects directly to the network, so the work requires network-authorised accreditation.

Upgrading your service cable

Common reasons to upgrade:

• Moving from single-phase to three-phase supply
• Installing solar, a battery, or an EV charger that needs more capacity
• Fixing a sagging or damaged cable
• Consolidating with a pole replacement

If you're already having a pole replaced, upgrading the service cable at the same time is often much cheaper than doing it separately later.

Not sure where your point of supply is?

We can tell you during a no-obligation site visit. Knowing the boundary is useful for insurance and planning — and we'll usually spot any cable issues while we're there.

Book a service cable check →