Evoenergy's chief executive officer has apologised to Farrer residents whose appliances were wrecked in a significant power surge in January.
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John Knox on Friday said the utility company's priority was to get the majority of the residents' compensation claims finalised and paid within the week.
"Quite simply, we need to and will do better," Mr Knox said.
Mr Knox said anyone who had not yet made a claim should lodge one as soon as possible, and the company had taken steps to contact all affected customers.
"I would like to apologise to customers who have been inconvenienced by this process and feel unsupported by Evoenergy," he said.
Evoenergy said it had received 70 claims to date for compensation with the average household claim of approximately $6000.
A spokeswoman on Friday said 48 claims had been approved for payment.
The company said it was committed to improving its process to ensure a faster resolution of compensation claims.
A fault in a neutral conductor on a pole-mounted transformer in Farrer caused a power surge to 84 electricity customers at 11am on Friday, January 20.
Affected homes were located on Gatton Street, Marshall Street and Spafford Crescent, with residents reporting thousands of dollars worth of damage.
Air conditioners, computers, fridges, lights and other mains-powered equipment was destroyed by the surge.
Mr Knox said Evoenergy would conduct a review of its processes to improve customers affected by power surges could be supported and to prevent incidents of this kind happening again.
"I would also like to take the opportunity to reassure the community that our network is one of the most reliable in the country and this type of incident is uncommon," he said.
"We continue to review our asset inspection program to ensure the safety and reliability of our network."
Chief Minister Andrew Barr and Energy Minister Shane Rattenbury on Thursday wrote to Evoenergy to encourage them to prioritise putting residents back to where they were before the surge knocked out thousands of dollars worth of appliances.
"They think it is not reasonable to expect residents to replace their damaged appliances with new ones without compensation for the full cost of replacement," a spokeswoman for the ACT government said in a statement.
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Residents have told The Canberra Times they faced replacement costs up to $45,000.
Evoenergy general manager Peter Billing on Thursday said residents would be required to sign non-disclosure agreements in cases where compensation exceeds Evoenergy's standard compensation policy.
The standard policy pays residents the depreciated value of damaged assets, however this value in many cases would not cover the replacement cost.
Mr Billing said no claim would be black and white and most likely Evoenergy would pay beyond the amount covered by insurance.
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Jasper Lindell
Jasper Lindell joined The Canberra Times in 2018. He is a Legislative Assembly reporter, covering ACT politics and government. He also writes about development, transport, heritage, local history, literature and the arts, as well as contributing to the Times' Panorama magazine. He was previously a Sunday Canberra Times reporter.
Jasper Lindell joined The Canberra Times in 2018. He is a Legislative Assembly reporter, covering ACT politics and government. He also writes about development, transport, heritage, local history, literature and the arts, as well as contributing to the Times' Panorama magazine. He was previously a Sunday Canberra Times reporter.
