Storm Arwen: Northumberland couple hit out at power cut compensation

Strong winds and snow during Storm Arwen brought down power lines

A couple who moved into their home on the day Storm Arwen struck say they have been refused full compensation despite six days without power.

Ben Walker rents a house in Northumberland, but his and his neighbour's electricity comes via sub meters off their landlady's supply.

He says Northern Powergrid (NP) told them the three houses counted as one household and must share compensation.

NP said it would seek to speak with Mr Walker so it can discuss his situation.

The 38-year-old said they were clearly three separate households and paid separate council tax bills, but were told by NP they counted as one household because there was one bill payer.

He said he and his partner Beth Spurs, 25, had therefore received a third of the compensation that a private homeowner would have.

"We still pay our share of electricity, we're still an end user and I think it's just appalling how they've dealt with that," he said.

'We're not alone'

Sub meters can be used in rental properties where the owner needs to calculate the usage of more than one group of tenants.

Mr Walker said they were common in rural areas where it was cheaper for separate households to share a supply rather than having a new one installed.

"I think we're not alone," he said.

"Northern Powergrid charge a lot of money to put another line up to another home with another meter on."

The couple moved into the house on Friday 26 November and lost power that same night. It remained off for six days and was intermittent for another two.

"We couldn't even unpack all our stuff, couldn't cook, couldn't do nothing," Mr Walker said.

Their third of the compensation would not cover the cost of the generator they had to use, let alone spoiled food, extra firewood and other expenses, he added.