The Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (ZESA) will now compensate customers who suffer damages from power surges. The news comes by way of Minister for Energy Zhemu Soda, who in an interview with The Sunday Mail Business said the following:
“There is an insurance policy to cover for such losses and a process of validation will be done to ascertain the loss before compensation”
I don’t know about you, but I am sceptical. For a power utility, that bemoans financial trouble at every turn to now offer compensation for the damage caused by decades of infrastructure negligence, doesn’t line up for me.
Don’t get me wrong, if this does indeed turn out to be legit, then we are better for it. It will also force ZESA to up its game as far as consistent and appropriate power supply to avoid compensating customers. But I wouldn’t bank on it. As we know nothing works as advertised in Zimbabwe, and it would be prudent not to rely on this facility.
In fear of preaching to the choir, I think it’s prudent that we all take the necessary steps to protect our own appliances and gadgets against power surges. I am sure that many of you already have surge protectors, be they extension adapters or, for the high rollers, a home surge processor.
For those who haven’t purchased surge protectors, they are a worthwhile investment. Additionally, you can unplug appliances during storms, if your wiring is iffy or old, it’s good to have an electrician look at it as well as unplugging devices and appliances after a power cut/load shedding. The song and dance of playing plug everything back in when normal service is restored surely beats the alternative, which will surely be a paperwork and time-consuming claims process.
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You can now purchase ZESA tokens via Techzim’s *405# USSD. The platform is available on Econet, Telecel and NetOne. You can also buy NetOne bundles with your EcoCash wallet as well as airtime.
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Even the “broke” insure themselves, because ineventualities can bankrupt you. Insurance may also protect their own equipment, with the cover also extending to consumers. But as with many things in Zim, you may have to jump through hoops to prove that your appliance was indeed damaged by a surge they caused. Coupled with the noise of opportunists, it won’t be an easy task.