Watch CBS News

Can A Power Company Be Sued If There's A Power Outage?

By Amy E. Feldman

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - A California family file a lawsuit, last month, against an acute care facility because it didn't have a backup generator, so when the power went off, their 82-year-old mother, who was on a ventilator, died, which is horrible.

And although being left without your air conditioner during power outage admittedly isn't quite as horrible, it still stinks.  So, when there's a power outage, people and offices that can't do business start to wonder, can I sue the power company if there's a blackout?  The answer is, it's possible…but it's hard to win.

The power companies tell customers that they try to provide continuous service, but they don't guarantee it.  Outages are infrequent, but expected. Which is why, the California family's lawsuit said, the acute care facility should have had a backup generator, because it was entirely foreseeable the power would go out.  In order for you to win a case against a power company, you'd have to prove not just that the power went out, but that the power company was negligent or reckless.

So, unless you have knowledge of negligent conduct, it's best off buying business interruption insurance and finding a friend who owns a generator.

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.