1. Look for the obvious first, do you have a power cut,? check with neighbours to see if they have power, if they have power then usually the problem is within your home.

2. Do you have a main R.c.d (Trip) either incorporated in your consumer unit, or as a separate unit. If you have, is the switch in the on position. If it is then you probably will need to call an engineer to discover the cause of the problem. If the switch is in the off position, firstly, switch off any fridges and freezers at their wall sockets, (Sometimes leaving them on will prevent the trip from resetting), and try resetting it. If your power is restored you have just saved an engineer calling on you. Don't forget to switch your fridge and freezer back on. The r.c.d is a sensitive piece of equipment and will sometimes switch off when a thunderstorm is in the area. If the trip immediately goes to the off position again, then please follow the guide below.

3. Did the power fail when you switched on an appliance, If it did then unplug the appliance if possible, if the appliance you switched on was a cooker or something else that is directly wired in to the mains, switch off at the wall and then try resetting the trip, if your power is then restored you have isolated the cause of the problem.

5. If the trip has switched off for no apparent reason and will not reset to the on position, try either unplugging all the fuses (If you have an older type of consumer unit) or switching off all the circuit breakers in the unit. Does the trip now reset, if the answer is no, you will need to call an engineer. If it does, you now need to switch on all of the breakers, or plug in the fuses one at a time until you cause the r.c.d to trip again, once you have discovered which fuse or breaker is causing the r.c.d to trip, leave the fuse out or the breaker switched off. You should now have restored nearly all your power. If you know what the fuse or breaker is controlling, then there is a good chance you will be able to discover the fault. A common cause of tripping is an Immersion heater, one of the things, hidden away, (out of sight out of mind).