Compensation

johndoe99

not sure if this is the right forum:

Last night during a power cut to Waterford I was using my PC and the abrupt power cut destroyed my PC. I've emailed the ESB and am awaiting a reply to know if I can be compensated for this.

Though I'm thinking they probably they have some sort of legal stuff in place to avoid such things.

Has anybody any legal advice or have been in a similar situation ?

Is there any point in contacting ESB at all.

Thanks

MagicSean

Not really. Are you sure it wasn't a power surge? And what do you mean by destroyed? I don't see how a power cut could destroy your computer. Surge protectors should always be used.

johndoe99

When the power came back on there was a large bang and some smoke at the PSU on the PC. i had a surge protector but it was obvious an inferior make as it didn't do its job.

Zambia

Try and cliam it of your house insurance. Better chance than suing.

MagicSean

Or the makers of the surge protector

johndoe99

Zambia wrote: »

Try and cliam it of your house insurance. Better chance than suing.

don't have house insurance

Seanbeag1 wrote: »

Or the makers of the surge protector

will look up the site and have a look

Beano

Why not just replace the power supply? The time and hassle involved in getting compensation from the ESB would outweight the cost of the power supply. Any excess on your house insurance would also probably outweight it.

johndoe99

Beano wrote: »

Why not just replace the power supply?

That's if, its just the PSU that went, the surge could easily have made it to the motherboard.

Beano

johndoe99 wrote: »

That's if, its just the PSU that went, the surge could easily have made it to the motherboard.

It would be worth your while to replace it to find out. They are relatively cheap. If you find out that it has fried the whole PC then claim from your house insurance. I cant see the ESB entertaining you at all.

westom

johndoe99 wrote: »

That's if, its just the PSU that went, the surge could easily have made it to the motherboard.

Best protection was already inside that PSU. Layers required inside a PSU means a surge does not pass through a PSU.

Motherboard damage is easy when PSU protection is bypassed. Protectors can make damage easier when too close to electronics and too far from earth ground.

Assume a surge enters on the hot wire - the most common source of surge damage. A protector simply connects that surge to all other computer AC wires. Now that surge has more paths to find earth destructively. One AC wire connects to the motherboard. Completely bypasses the PSU. Motherboard damage means that surge found earth via that bypass wire.

Telcos all over the world locate their protectors as close to earth ground as possible. And up to 50 meters distant from electronics. That separation increases protection. That separation means a protector connect surge energy on all wires to earth. And does not bypass protection inside a PSU.

Above assumes you had a surge. Low voltage (power cut off) does not harm any electronics. But a transient that can cause a power cut off does create high voltages. Protectors are for high voltages. Do nothing for low voltages (ie brownout, blackout). If your damage was from an electrical anomaly, then the PSU suffered voltages well in excess of 1000 volts. No protector adjacent to a PSU claims to protect from that type of transient. Other well proven solutions that costs tens and 100 times less money are available. Even found in your local telco's switching computer building.

A failed PSU must never cause motherboard damage for a long list of other reasons.