Citation and commencement

1. These Regulations may be cited as the Electricity Supply (Amendment) Regulations 1994, and shall come into force on 1st April 1994.

Amendment of the Electricity Supply Regulations 1988

2. The Electricity Supply Regulations 1988(2) ("the Principal Regulations") shall be amended as follows.

3. For regulation 34 of the Principal Regulations, save for the heading thereto, there shall be substituted the words in the Schedule hereto.

4. Schedule 4 to the Principal Regulations shall be amended as follows:

(a)in Part I,

(i)for paragraph 8(c), there shall be substituted the following:

"(c)whether the earthing of the low voltage electricity supply system is by means of protective multiple earthing;"

(ii)paragraphs 4(a), 7(a), 8(d) and 8(f) shall be deleted;

(b)in Part III, paragraph 4(a) shall be deleted; and

(c)in Parts I, II, III and IV, for paragraph 3 in each case there shall be substituted the following:

"3. A unique and sequential reference number indicating, in respect of each year ending on 31st March, the number of the event.".

Amendment of the Electricity Supply (Amendment) Regulations 1990

5. Paragraph 11 of the Schedule to the Electricity Supply (Amendment) Regulations 1990(3) shall cease to have effect.

Regulation 3

THE SCHEDULE

"34.-(1) Every supplier shall give to the Secretary of State notice in accordance with this regulation in respect of any event specified in paragraph (2).

(2) The events referred to in paragraph (1) are-

(a)any event attributable in whole or in part to the generating, transforming, control or carrying of energy up to and including the supply terminals, which has given rise to-

(i)the death of any person other than a person engaged by the supplier for the purposes of his business;

(ii)an injury (including any electric shock) to any person other than a person engaged by the supplier for the purposes of his business;

(iii)any fire; or

(iv)any explosion or implosion;

(b)any event attributable in whole or in part to the presence of energy on the consumer's side of the supply terminals on any non-industrial and non-commercial premises resulting in the death of any person;

(c)any event, whether or not accompanied by an event specified in sub-paragraph (a) above, which caused an overhead line to be at a height less than that required by regulation 13(2);

(d)the occurrence of any damage to any underground electric line of the supplier resulting from an event not specified in sub-paragraphs (a) and (b) above; and

(e)any event other than those listed in sub-paragraphs (a), (c) or (d) above which, taking into account the circumstances of that event, was likely to cause any of the events listed in sub-paragraph (a).

(3) In respect of any event specified in paragraph (2)(a),

(a)the requirement to give notice in accordance with paragraph (4) (so far as applicable) applies in addition to the requirement to give notice in accordance with paragraph (5) unless the notice given satisfies the requirements of both paragraphs, and

(b)the requirement to give notice in accordance with paragraphs (4) and (5) applies in addition to the requirement to give notice in accordance with paragraph (6).

(4) In respect of any event specified in paragraph (2)(a)(i) or (in the case of a serious injury) in paragraph (2)(a)(ii), notice of the event shall be given to the Secretary of State by telephone or other immediate means of communication immediately after the event becomes known to the supplier.

(5) In respect of any event specified in paragraph (2)(a) or (2)(b), notice containing the relevant particulars shall, subject to paragraph (8), as soon as possible after the event becomes known to the supplier be given to the Secretary of State in writing by the quickest practicable means.

(6) In respect of any event notifiable under paragraph (2)(a), (2)(c) or (2)(e), notice shall be given to the Secretary of State by post within 15 days of the end of the month in which the event becomes known to the supplier, in the form of a computer disc which:

(a)conforms to the description specified in the Department's publication; and

(b)subject to paragraph (8), contains the information comprising the relevant particulars, arranged in a form which complies with the technical requirements specified in that publication.

(7) In respect of any event specified in paragraph (2)(d), notice containing the relevant particulars shall be sent to the Secretary of State by means of a return in writing to be submitted within one month of the period of 3 months ending on 31st March, 30th June, 30th September or 31st December (as the case may be), in which the event became known to the supplier.

(8) The notices required by paragraphs (5) and (6) shall, where the supplier is unable to give full particulars, contain such of the relevant particulars as are available to the supplier at the time of giving the notice, and the remaining particulars shall be supplied to the Secretary of State in writing by the quickest practicable means immediately after they have become known to the supplier.

(9) In this regulation-

(a)"the Department's publication" means the publication entitled (under the heading "ELECTRICITY SUPPLY REGULATIONS 1988") "COMPUTERISATION OF THE NOTIFICATION OF CERTAIN SPECIFIED EVENTS UNDER REGULATION 34", subtitled "SPECIFICATION OF THE DATA FILES", and published in December 1993 by the Department of Trade and Industry at 1 Palace Street, London SW1 5HE, a copy of which has been certified as such by the signature of the Minister for Energy, Department of Trade and Industry.

(b)"event" means any event of the kind specified irrespective of whether it was accidental;

(c)"relevant particulars" means:

(i)in respect of an event specified in paragraph (2)(a), (2)(b) or (2)(d), the particulars specified in Parts I, II and IV, respectively, of Schedule 4; and

(ii)in respect of an event specified in paragraph (2)(c) or (2)(e), the particulars specified in Part III of Schedule 4;

(d)"serious injury" means any injury which results in the person injured being admitted into hospital as an in-patient; and

(e)"writing" includes any communication transmitted by telex or facsimile transmission."

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations amend the Electricity Supply Regulations 1988 ("the 1988 Regulations"), which require every supplier to give the Secretary of State notice in writing of certain events (including any event giving rise to a death, injury, fire or explosion), and additionally require notice of events giving rise to a death or serious injury to be given by telephone, telex or other immediate means of communication immediately the event becomes known to the supplier.

The 1988 Regulations are amended by these Regulations so as to require the notice to be given in the form of a computer disc in the case of most of the notifiable events. The computer disc must comply with the specifications contained in the publication entitled (under the heading "ELECTRICITY SUPPLY REGULATIONS 1988") "COMPUTERISATION OF THE NOTIFICATION OF CERTAIN SPECIFIED EVENTS UNDER REGULATION 34", subtitled "SPECIFICATION OF THE DATA FILES", and published by the Department of Trade and Industry, 1 Palace Street, London SW1E 5HE, in December 1993, a copy of which has been certified as such by the signature of the Minister for Energy, Department of Trade and Industry.

In addition, the Regulations retain the requirement to give notice by telephone or other immediate means of communication of any event giving rise to a death or serious injury immediately after the event becomes known to the supplier. Certain events must also be notified in writing by the quickest practicable means as soon as possible after the event becomes known to the supplier. (Both the latter two requirements, however, may be complied with by a single telex or facsimile transmission.)

The Regulations also reduce the amount of information required to be notified.

A compliance cost assessment has been prepared, a copy of which has been placed in the library of each House of Parliament. Copies of the compliance cost assessment and of the publication referred to above can be obtained free of charge by postal application to the Department of Trade and Industry Palace Street Library, Room 2.LG.4, 1 Palace Street, London SW1E 5HE.