There are rumours of electricity blackouts this winter in some areas as a result of shortages of gas, which are likely to come at peak times. Here’s everything you need to do to prepare.

If the power blackouts do go ahead it will be the first time there has been controlled blackouts since the 1970s. 

Preparing for a power cut

Before a power cut there are a few things you can do to make sure you are equipped to deal with the dark times.

You should make sure you have at least one torch in your house and spare batteries.

We recommend  that you avoid lighting candles as much as possible if you can because they are a fire risk.

External battery packs are handy for charging your phone without relying on electricity. Just make sure the gadget is fully charged so that it is ready to use straight away. This also goes for other electronic devices such re-chargeable lights and laptops.

As it will likely be in the midst of winter have a good supply of thick blankets and layered fleece clothing items ready to keep everybody in your household warm.

Have a first aid kit handy too in case of an emergency.

It may also be a good idea to keep your petrol topped up as petrol stations rely on electricity to pump petrol.

If you rely on anything that requires batter power like a medical device, make sure you talk to your doctor about a back up plan.

Fridge freezers during a power cut

If you are without power for any length of time you will want to keep an eye on your fridge freezer.

Many of us rely on a freezer to stock up food and keep grocery bills low.

Your fridge will keep food safe for up to 4 hours during a power outage, but keep the door closed as much as possible to give your food the best chance of lasting.

The FSA says a full freezer will hold a safe temperature for approximately 48 hours or 24 hours if it is half full and the door remains closed.

Food may be safely refrozen if it still contains ice crystals, or is at 4C or below, however, its quality may suffer. 

What about other appliances?

There are certain appliances that you should unplug though, to avoid damage to items in case of surge when power returns.

But these should only be non-essentials, like TVs, which you can switch off at the wall plug.

 Sensitive equipment like a PC should be unplugged in case of a power surge.

If you have fish as pets be careful about their tank. 

Workplaces & Hybrid Working

Employers should give careful thought to contingency planning, identifying any steps that can be taken to minimise disruption during the event of a blackout.

We expect that ensuring the resilience of IT servers and systems will be a priority for many companies. Manufacturers will face challenges such as keeping production lines and refrigeration systems running, while retail and hospitality may not be able to provide their usual services or even remain open at all.

The widespread move to remote and hybrid working may create additional challenges for employers. Workforces which increasingly rely on electronic communication and collaboration may struggle to work effectively – or at all – during outages. Although, as the plan is for rolling blackouts in different regions, it is possible that only some rather than all homeworking employees will be affected at the same time.

Some practical steps that employers can take to minimise the impact are:

• Consider adjusting working times, shift patterns or opening hours in order to accommodate a planned blackout. The ability to change working hours on short notice will depend on the wording of the contract, and this may not be possible for some employees who have commitments such as childcare or other caring responsibilities.

• Investing in standby generators to maintain power supply for critical equipment or facilities.

• Encourage employees to keep their devices fully charged while working in the office or from home, particularly if they have received prior notification of a blackout.

• Advise employees on how to use their mobile phone as a Wi-Fi hotspot (assuming they have available data and the mobile phone network isn’t affected by the blackout). Employees may also be able to download or print out key documents in advance to work on without access to the internet.

• Ask homeworking employees who are affected by a blackout to come into the workplace, if the workplace remains unaffected and transport is still running (which should be the case). This may not be possible for some employees who work from home for reasons such as childcare or other caring commitments.

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