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Lock meter box (and main switch)

  • 06-07-2021 10:38PM
    #1
    oppy30
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 35 ✭


    My meter box is placed at the front of my house, freely accessible from outside. In addition to the meter, it contains the main electricity switch for my house. It can be opened with a simple triangle key. This basically means that anyone can come here and cut power to my house in a matter of seconds - just for the fun of it, or to have an easier life robbing the house. Now, two questions:
    • Is this unexpected to anyone else, or a totally normal thing? I have recently moved to a house after living in apartments all my life, so it might be like this in every house but that's the first time I see it.
    • Can I do anything to lock the meter box/main switch with, say, a padlock, so that it's not so straightforward to access? What are the legal requirements?


Comments

  • #2
    aido79
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 5,374 ✭✭✭aido79


    oppy30 wrote: »
    My meter box is placed at the front of my house, freely accessible from outside. In addition to the meter, it contains the main electricity switch for my house. It can be opened with a simple triangle key. This basically means that anyone can come here and cut power to my house in a matter of seconds - just for the fun of it, or to have an easier life robbing the house. Now, two questions:
    • Is this unexpected to anyone else, or a totally normal thing? I have recently moved to a house after living in apartments all my life, so it might be like this in every house but that's the first time I see it.
    • Can I do anything to lock the meter box/main switch with, say, a padlock, so that it's not so straightforward to access? What are the legal requirements?

    It's completely normal as it's a regulation to have the switch there to isolate power. I would also imagine it would be illegal to lock it as the meter reader needs access to it to read the meter.


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