Stay safe on the farm

Perform regular checks of your overhead power lines. Any sagging, damage, or signs of wear and tear? Most lines on farms are privately owned. Please check your lines regularly and address any safety hazards immediately.

Always scan your surroundings before working near electricity. Check before exiting the cab, when loading and transporting machinery, and when raising or unfolding equipment arms and extensions to avoid you or your equipment coming into contact with any live wires or other electrical equipment that could be energised. If you need to carry out work near power lines, please request our Safe Disconnect service. This disconnection and reconnection service is free during business hours. Read more. 

Locate any underground cables before you dig, thrust, or bulldoze. Underground cables can carry high voltages of electricity, and, if damaged, can cause serious injury or death. You could also be liable for the costs associated with repairing cables you damage. Avoid the risk – utilise the free beforeUdig service before carrying out any work.

Is your electric fence equipment up to standard? Ensure your electric fence equipment meets AS/NZS 2014 and follow the manufacturer’s instructions. Take special care with fences near overhead lines and help others keep safe by putting signs on electric fences beside roads and other places with public access.

Check for any unruly trees or other vegetation encroaching on power lines. Untrimmed trees falling onto private service lines account for around 80% of our network’s outages and can be a serious safety hazard for humans and animals. While it’s okay to trim a tree that’s more than four meters away from overhead lines yourself, any part of a tree that’s within four meters of a power line must be, by law, trimmed by an approved arborist for everyone’s safety. Read more about trees near powerlines, including your responsibilities as a tree owner here.