Power Restoration - Certificate of Verification (CoV)

Has your power been off for longer than 6 months? Power companies require verification of your electrical system before they can restore power. Let's get your power back on today, anywhere in Auckland.

Our fully registered and qualified inspectors and electricians thoroughly inspect your electrical installation. If it's safe and up to code, we issue a Certificate of Verification (Energy Works Certificate) on the day, allowing your energy provider to restore power. If issues are found, we provide a report of the remedial work required, fix small issues on the spot, and confirm any additional costs before proceeding.

eCertify's fixed Auckland price is all inclusive: callout and mileage, testing and verification, electrical CoV or remedial report.

Why your power company asks for this

The six month rule is not your retailer being difficult. It sits in the Electricity (Safety) Regulations 2010. Regulation 74 covers a low voltage installation that has been disconnected or isolated, where no general or high risk electrical work has been done since. If more than six months have passed, whoever reconnects the supply has to give or sight a certificate before they do it.

The regulation is specific about that certificate. It has to be issued in accordance with section 3 of AS/NZS 3019, it has to certify that the installation is suitable for continued use, and it has to come from a person authorised to certify mains work. Reconnecting without one is an offence under the regulations, and the offence falls on the person doing the reconnection. That is why no retailer will make an exception for you.

Your certificate has a six month shelf life

One detail catches people out. Regulation 74 also requires the certificate to have been issued no earlier than six months before the date supply is restored. So if you get certified and then settlement drags on, or the tenancy start date moves, the certificate can go stale and the visit has to be done again.

Book it close to the date you actually want the power on. If your timing is uncertain, call us and we will work backwards from your settlement or move in date.

What we do on site

We go through the installation from the point of supply inwards: the meter box and main switchboard, the consumer mains, the main earthing system and electrode, protection and RCDs, then the circuits, fittings and any fixed appliances. Anywhere the property has been empty, we pay particular attention to what happens to a house that has been sitting: moisture in the switchboard, rodent damage to cabling, corroded earth connections and deteriorated insulation.

Testing is part of it, not an extra. You do not need to be there for the whole visit, but we do need access to the switchboard and to every room.

How long it takes

About an hour on site for a standard home. Larger properties, or ones where the switchboard is hard to get at, take longer. Where the installation is safe and compliant, the certificate is issued on the spot before we leave, so in most cases one visit is the whole job. You can then send it straight to your retailer.

If the installation does not pass

We do not issue a certificate for an installation that is not safe, and you would not want us to. Instead you get a written report setting out what needs fixing and why. Small items we resolve on the spot, with the cost confirmed with you first. Larger work is formally quoted, so you can decide whether we do it or somebody else does. Once the remedial work is done and certified, the certificate follows.

Long term disconnections are the jobs most likely to need something. A house that has been off supply for years often has an old switchboard that was already marginal. Our switchboard upgrade page covers what that involves if it comes to it.

What the price includes

The price is fixed and includes GST. It covers callout and mileage anywhere in Auckland, the full inspection and testing, and either your certificate or a full written report. There is nothing to add on afterwards for the visit itself.

Not sure this is the certificate you need? Our guide to energy works certificates explains how the names fit together, or just call the office and we will work it out with you before you book.