By Fallen line, sparks or smoke
Stay back at least 8 metres, keep children and pets clear of any line on the ground, and call 111 first. After a coastal storm, a line dropped across a beach access road or dune track can still be live: do not drive over it.
Help your neighbours
Live community map & report a power cut
If neighbours along your street are also dark, the fault is on the Electra network, not your switchboard. The map below shows outages reported by other Selectra readers across New Zealand in real time. Use it as a first diagnostic before you call: if an active outage is already plotted near you, crews likely know about it. A short anonymous report helps others on the coast see what is happening. It does not replace the call to Electra.
Immediate danger
Fallen power line, sparks, burning smell or smoke? Call 111 before reporting anything else. Stay back at least 8 metres from any downed line.
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Report a power cut
Thanks: your report is recorded
Now make the official call to your lines company so a crew is dispatched. For a fallen line or any hazard, dial 111 first.
Who fixes the fault
Your lines company and its 24/7 fault line
Only the lines company that owns the poles and wires in your street can dispatch a crew. On the Kapiti Coast that is Electra, not Wellington Electricity. Call the number below if your report shows the outage is on the network.
Electra
One community-owned network from Paekakariki to Otaki
Dial 0800 LOST POWER. 24/7 faults line.
Coverage: Paraparaumu, Paraparaumu Beach, Raumati Beach, Raumati South, Waikanae, Waikanae Beach, Otaki, Te Horo, Peka Peka, Paekakariki.
Three Kapiti-only factors
Why Kapiti outages have their own pattern
The coast runs as a narrow strip between the Tasman Sea and the Tararua foothills, and the Electra network was built to match it. Three local factors drive most of the reliability statistics.
Coastal salt and wind
Raumati Beach, Waikanae Beach, Otaki Beach: salt-laden onshore wind corrodes insulators and bridges conductors in a strong nor-wester, which is the leading cause of beach-suburb trips.
Tararua foothills
Te Horo, Peka Peka, rural Otaki: overhead spurs run inland to lifestyle blocks under the hills, where tree fall after heavy rain causes the longer multi-hour outages on the coast.
Rapid growth
Paraparaumu, Waikanae: the coast is one of the fastest-growing parts of the lower North Island, so planned outages for new subdivisions and feeder upgrades are more frequent than in a settled urban grid.
Kapiti tip
If you live on a lifestyle block at Te Horo or rural Otaki and lose power often in winter, register any medical-dependent equipment with your retailer so Electra can give you proactive notice before a planned shutdown. A small petrol portable generator for the fridge and modem is a reasonable buy on the inland spurs, but never run it indoors and never back-feed into the wall.
Fried appliance on the Kapiti Coast? The claim path
If a network surge or under-voltage event kills an appliance, Electra is the channel for a fault-related claim. The process rewards proper paperwork.
- 1Call 0800 567 876 and ask for the incident number for your outage. Note the time, the duration and any visible cause such as a tree on the line or a transformer hum.
- 2Lodge the claim through the Electra contact form at electra.co.nz, with the incident number and your address in the message.
- 3Attach: photos of the dead appliance, the brand and model, the original purchase receipt where possible, and a registered electrician's report. Appliances under 5 years old fare best.
- 4Allow 4 to 8 weeks. Storm and salt-corrosion outages are usually deemed weather, not negligence: in that case, take the claim to your contents insurer instead.
If the fault was weather-driven
A nor-wester or coastal storm that brings a line down is force majeure, so Electra is likely to decline an appliance claim. Your contents insurance is then the right channel: most Kapiti policies cover surge-damaged appliances up to NZ$1,000 to NZ$2,000 per item, with the lines company's incident number as supporting evidence.
Kapiti Coast-specific questions
Frequently asked questions: Kapiti outages
Electra, 24 hours a day, on 0800 567 876 (0800 LOST POWER). The same number covers Paraparaumu, Raumati, Waikanae, Otaki and Paekakariki. The Kapiti Coast is not on the Wellington Electricity network. For a fallen line or any hazard, dial 111 first.
Yes. Electra owns the poles and wires from Paekakariki in the south up to Otaki in the north, including all of Paraparaumu, Raumati and Waikanae. Your electricity retailer (the company that sends your bill) can be any of the national brands, but for an actual power cut it is always Electra that dispatches the crew.
The beach suburbs (Raumati Beach, Waikanae Beach, Otaki Beach) sit in the path of salt-laden onshore wind. Salt builds up on insulators, and a strong nor-wester can bridge conductors or blow debris into the lines, tripping a protective device. Most of these outages clear in 1 to 4 hours once crews patrol the affected feeder.
Single fault on an urban Paraparaumu or Waikanae feeder: 30 to 90 minutes. Inland lifestyle blocks at Te Horo or rural Otaki: 1 to 4 hours, longer after heavy rain brings down a tree. Major storm with multiple lines down: up to 8 hours, occasionally into the next day on the most remote rural spurs.
Yes, normally by letter, email or text several days before the work. Upcoming planned shutdowns are also listed on the Electra live outage map. The coast grows fast, so subdivision connections and feeder upgrades mean planned outages are more common here than on a settled city network. Register any medical-dependent equipment with your retailer so Electra can confirm contingencies.
Yes, if the surge came from the network and Electra is shown to have been at fault, for example through poor maintenance or faulty equipment. Lodge the claim through the contact form at electra.co.nz with the incident number, photos, the original receipt and a registered electrician's report. Weather-driven outages are usually excluded, in which case your contents insurer is the right channel.
Nearby outage guides
Power outages across the Wellington region
Same storm front, different lines company. If the cut reaches a neighbouring town, here is the right 24/7 fault line and live map for the rest of the Wellington region.
See the full Wellington outage guide, or browse every New Zealand region.