What should I do if the power goes off at home in Spain?

Power cut at home: the first few minutes

1. Use your phone torch (flashlight) rather than candles.
2. Check for power outside: stairwell, neighbours, street lights.
3. If there is power outside, the cut affects only you: go to your fuse box (consumer unit, or cuadro eléctrico).
4. If there is none outside either, the cut affects the building or the area.

What to look for in your fuse box

If the RCD has dropped

There is a leak to earth. Reset the RCD (diferencial); if it will not go up, switch off all the small breakers and turn them on one by one to find the faulty circuit.

If the main switch or a breaker has dropped

The main switch (IGA) or a circuit breaker (MCB) cuts out because of an overload or a short circuit. Unplug the last thing you switched on and reset it. If it trips the moment you switch it on, do not keep trying.

If everything in the fuse box is up

The ICP may have cut out. In Spain this power-limiting switch is now built into the digital smart meter and it cuts the supply when you exceed your contracted power (potencia contratada). Switch off the big appliances and wait for the meter to restore the supply. If it does not, the fault may be in the individual riser cable (derivación individual) from the meter to your fuse box, in a joint or in a lost phase: a job for an electrician.

If the outage affects the building or the street

When there is no light in the stairwell or in neighbouring homes, the fault is usually in the network of the distributor, which in Seville is e-distribución, or in the building’s communal installations. The distributor owns the cables and the meter; your supplier only bills you.

While you wait for the power to return

Unplug TVs and computers so the returning voltage does not damage them, keep the fridge and freezer closed, leave one lamp on and do not tamper with the meter or the building’s main fuse box.

When to call an electrician

Call if half the house has no power, if a breaker or the RCD will not hold, if you smell burning or the fuse box feels hot, or if everything is up and only your home has no power. As a guide, excluding VAT (add 21 % VAT), an emergency call-out costs 50 to 100 euros during working hours and 100 to 200 euros at night or on public holidays, plus the repair. In Seville, Spain, we can help at any hour as a 24-hour emergency electrician. More answers in our FAQ.