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Life support equipment – be prepared and make a plan

25 May 2016

Even if you are registered with your electricity company as needing life support equipment, it's still important to have a backup plan.

Do you or someone at your home need medical life support equipment?

Registering as a life support customer with your energy company is important.

It means that if your electricity company is planning to turn off the power for works or some other reason, they will tell you before it happens so you can make other arrangements to power your equipment until the power comes back on.

If you want to be registered as a life support customer, you will need to:

  • contact your electricity company and ask them send you a registration form to complete
  • visit your doctor – they will need to fill out some details and sign it to prove that you need life support equipment
  • return the form to your electricity company as soon as possible
  • tell your electricity company if any of your details change – like your address or contact details.

Having a backup plan is still important even if you are a registered life support customer – unexpected power outages can happen. Talk to carers, family and friends about making a backup plan that covers what to do if your electricity or gas goes out without warning.

A plan could cover:

  • What steps will you take? Where will you go – will you go to a friend's house?
  • How you will get there? Do you have transport and will you be able to transport your equipment?
  • How will you contact people if the power goes out? Remember, some phones don't work without power.
  • Who will you call? Keeping a contact list of names, addresses and telephone numbers of your doctor, the nearest hospital, and someone nearby who can assist you. Keep this somewhere handy so you can find it easily.
  • Keep backup medical equipment fully charged at all times and ready to go in case you need to use it.

Tell your retailer and distributor if your details change, like your address or phone number.

For more information, go to our Customers using life support equipment page.

Last updated on Wednesday, October 25, 2023 at 2:27 PM