Do you need to upgrade your home's electricity supply?

Before asking for more power, find out what is actually switching off.

The answer in 2 lines. In England, households do not normally choose a subscribed electricity capacity from a menu of tariff bands. If the electricity trips, ask a registered electrician to establish the cause before requesting an upgrade. A faulty appliance, a wiring problem or an overloaded circuit needs attention even if the incoming supply has spare capacity. If you are adding an electric vehicle charger, a heat pump or other substantial equipment, your installer should assess demand and any network requirements. Your electricity supplier deals with the meter; your local distribution network operator deals with the incoming connection and main service fuse.

The first steps

Record what happens: which switch moves, which rooms lose power and which appliances were running. Photograph labels only from a safe position, without removing covers.
Arrange an assessment: use Electrical Safety First's electrician search. Enter your postcode and select installation or remedial work.
Identify the right contact: use Ofgem's supplier and network guidance. Follow its postcode-search link to identify your local network operator.

Stop: danger

Scorching, smoke or exposed live parts: stop using the affected equipment and keep away. Have the fault made safe before discussing extra capacity.
Sealed equipment: never pull the incoming service fuse, break seals or open the meter. Increasing a fuse rating yourself can leave cables dangerously unprotected.

What are you trying to change?

Start with the problem rather than a target fuse size. A circuit breaker protects a circuit against excessive current; a residual current device responds to electrical leakage. Repeated operation needs investigation. Paying for a larger incoming supply will not repair a defective appliance or make unsuitable wiring safe.

Ask the electrician to explain whether the issue is a fault, the capacity of an individual circuit, the consumer unit or the incoming connection. Request the diagnosis in writing before authorising work.

Planning a charger, heat pump or extension

Give your installer details of the proposed equipment and everything else likely to run at the same time. Include electric heating, cooking, hot water and existing charging equipment. Ask whether controls that manage simultaneous demand could avoid unnecessary work.

The assessment should distinguish a main-fuse change from a more substantial connection upgrade. It should also identify any work needed on your own installation and any meter-related work. Do not assume that fitting a smart meter increases the capacity of the supply.

What not to do

Choosing a fuse size from a neighbour's installation or an online house-size table.
Assuming the rating printed on a fuse holder confirms the fuse actually fitted inside.
Booking separate upgrade visits before the electrician, supplier and network operator have agreed what equipment needs changing.

Who arranges the work and what might it cost?

Read Ofgem's connection guidance before approaching your network operator. Use the operator's official website, reached through the identification guidance above, and look for an existing-supply upgrade or additional-capacity enquiry.

Provide your address, the proposed equipment and the installer's assessment. Ask for a written scope, quotation and explanation of any preparatory work. Charges and appointments depend on the connection and the work required; there is no reliable nationwide price for every household upgrade.

Will a smaller supply reduce your bill?

Domestic electricity bills generally combine an energy unit rate with a standing charge. Reducing your main-fuse rating does not normally move you into a cheaper subscribed-capacity band.

Use Ofgem's explanation of unit rates and standing charges to identify those entries on your bill. If cost is the concern, review consumption and tariff terms separately from electrical capacity. The price cap does not cap your total bill.

Good to know

Keep the assessment, quotations and completion certificates together so future installers can understand the work.
If you rent, tell your landlord about recurring trips and discuss permission before arranging an alteration to the installation.
This guide covers England. Network arrangements and building requirements can differ elsewhere; use the electrician search's appropriate country guidance.

Illustrative example: in Leeds, Priya wants a vehicle charger and worries that she needs a larger supply. Her installer checks the existing installation and proposed demand, then confirms the network requirements before she books any upgrade. She asks for separate written details of electrical work, meter work and connection work.

A made-up story, for illustration.

Bobby

Sources, verification, confidence

Verified on 4 November 2026, for England. Confidence: high for identifying the supplier and network operator, domestic billing principles and using a registered electrician; medium for the upgrade route, which depends on the existing connection. Capacity, costs and appointments require an individual assessment.