How to Know When Someone is Stealing Your Electricity

Have you ever had your electricity units run out so fast that you were sure someone else was using them with you?

Your hunch might just be right. About 40% of generated electricity in Nigeria is lost to electricity theft. So even if you may not be stealing electricity, someone else might be “tapping” from you.

In this post, I’ll be sharing a few pointers to help you identify when someone is stealing your electricity and what to do when such situations arise.

1) There’s a Mysterious Wire

While tampering with electricity connections might be done in a very discreet way, the most obvious method is by connecting a wire illegally. Usually, a neighbor might plug in their wires to one of your power outlets. From there, they use the electricity connected to your house.

So check for wires that aren’t yours. Follow these wires to their origin and you’ll be able to detect who is stealing your electricity.

2) Your Bill Becomes Unexplainable

When there’s a change in weather or appliances, there’s a tendency for your electricity bill to increase. However, this type of hike is explainable because there’s an obvious reason and your meter readings will fall within the same consumption rate.

However, if your electricity units starts to reduce at a surprising level and you cannot trace it to any significant change, someone is probably tampering with your electricity.

In addition, If your bill is suddenly unusually high, check to see if the rates have changed. Compare your current bill to past bills to see if your usage has increased, and look around to see if anything has changed in your house. Are you using the air conditioner more? Did you buy a new refrigerator that is less efficient than the old ones

3) The Meter and Electricity Pole Looks Tampered

For tampered meters, you want to look around for cuts or lid covers that don’t close. When an installed meter starts to have these issues, it can be a red flag.

Electricity poles are also a great place to look. This is because intruders usually tend to cut and rejoin illegal wires across electricity poles. So if your wires look scattered and unlike the neighboring electrical poles, there’s a chance someone else is connected to your house.

Do not touch the wire under any circumstances, but visually inspect the wire between your meter and your house. Are there splices there that weren’t there before?

Are there clamps or wires coming off the main wire? If you see a wire going from your house to your neighbor’s, its a good indication that electricity is being stolen

In addition, a poor economy has caused electricity theft to rise as people who are struggling to make ends meet resort to desperate measures to keep the power on.

The high bills associated with stolen electricity aren’t the only shock you may encounter. Stolen electricity can be dangerous. Thieves strip wires and leave them exposed where people can accidentally touch them.

4) Turn off circuit breaker.

Turn off all your circuit breakers, then go look at your meter. If it is still running, it means something is drawing power from between the meter and the electrical panel. That’s a good indication that power is being stolen.

What To Do? Call Your DISCO

If you suspect a problem, call your power distribution company (DISCO)

Your utility provider can determine if power is being stolen. Many utilities have “police” whose job it is to investigate power thefts.
Yelling at the discovered “tappers” can only do so much.

Discos officials have been trained to deal with these types of electrical theft.

Warning

Stolen electricity often relies on exposed wires. Don’t touch any suspicious looking wire. You could suffer a dangerous electrical shock.