When you purchase a new property inSpain it is the responsibility of the builder to supply the electricity connections and water connection. If the property is a resale then the service connections should under normal conditions still be connected and you will just have to change the contract into your name. There are some difficulties that can happen with the electric supply to your house.
. Your supply has been cut because of lack of payment and the contract is now cancelled.
If this is the case it is not just as simple as paying the bill & being reconnected in a few hours. The process for reconnection is almost the same as registering a new house with the electricity company. You will need a series of documents:-
- A habitation licence or licence of first/second occupation from the town hall. To get this you will need to go to the town hall with a copy of the deeds N.I.E. number, Copy of the rates bill up to date. And a certificate from an architect with a plan of the property. This certificate should not cost more than 450€. Once this is presented to the town hall with the application form they will locate your property on the town planning map and stamp your application for with a entry number and application date.
- A buletin. This is a certificate issued by an official electrical installer that certifies that the instillation in your home is according to the regional health & safety regulations. The installer will check your instillation and possibly need to change some items if he house has not been recently built. Some installers are stricter than others and will charge you according to the amount of work they deem necessary to bring your instillation up to standard.
- A Hoja de Enlace certificate. This is issued by the installer which states that the point of connection from the mains supply to where your meter will be installed in order. These two certificates should cost no more than 180€, plus any payment for adjusting the installation in your home.
Once you have all the necessary documents with a copy of your N.I.E. number and bank account details, they must be sent to Iberdrola, you can ring 902201520 and apply for the connection. You will have to keep saying English until you are put through an English speaking operator. They will ask you to send the documentation to acometidas@iberdrola.es or give you a fax number. On some occasions the electrical installer will forward these certificates for you but don’t count on it. Once everything has been submitted to iberdrola they will take some days to confirm that the documentation is in order then they will have a new meter installed and connect you.
This process can take some time so if you are a coming to Spain on holiday at your holiday home it is necessary to give at least a week or two for a representative to deal with this on your behalf so there is electricity in your home when you come. Iberdola charge for there connections service than they will bill you for the amount of electricity you use. There are also many other companies that supply electricity that you can choose from.
.The builder has you on a work supply and has not connected your home to a proper supply yet.
This supply can be a little temperamental especially if there are continuing works on the estate. It is important that constant pressure is put on the builder to issue the certificates necessary for you to get your individual supply so that you are not cut off if the builder goes bust. The reason that this lack of individual supply has continued needs to be investigated especially if your part or sector of the estate has been completed. Perhaps the builder has not applied for the correct planning permission and is having difficulties with the town hall as a result or the bank is not lending him any more money to complete the building.
.You do not have a legal supply because your house was illegally built and you do not have the proper certificate that gives you the right to supply.
Getting the necessary certificates from the town hall can be very difficult because the Valencian community has some very strict guidelines about how to deal with illegal properties, these guidelines make it very difficult for the town halls to easily regularise the properties built without planning permission. These laws are laid down to protect the environment against exploitation (unfortunately these rules have not been enforced in the past & that is the reason why there have been so many infractions). Some town halls are finding solutions to assist home owners others are not. Often a home owner is left to find there own solution I have even been told by town hall operatives not to bring the property problems to them, others have been informative and helpful.
.You have electricity but you have not received any bill because the connection is illegal and you are receiving stolen electricity.
This is a very difficult position to be in. It is most probable that in the near future the electricity company will cut you off and you will receive a large fine for stealing electricity. It is advisable to seek legal assistance as what to do. This assistance can be expensive and if you are living in an illegal property I’m sure you are fed up with paying solicitors to get no where. There is free legal assistance available in this area. Contact me & I will let you know how to get it. Many times people are told that the builder that has put you in this situation is bankrupt and it is a waste of time and money trying to bring a case for compensation against them. There is a way of finding out if that is the case. It is quite easy to do a search to see if the rumour of bankruptcy is true. One the solvency of the builder is established then you can decide if you want to bring him/them to court. One very brave lady has decided to do all she can to bring the builder to justice even if he is not solvent just to make a statement that this sort of behaviour should be dealt with and we have to take a stand.
.You are connected but the contract is not for a house but a warehouse or for a water pump etc.
This is better than no connection at all. Once you have a contract with the electricity company it is very difficult that it will be cancelled. It is important that you keep the payments up to date so the connection is not cut. You can investigate the possibility of regularising your property. It become a bit more difficult when it is a question of a group of properties connected to one meter. There is always the risk of someone reporting the illegal connections to the ministry of industry and the connection being cut off and the meter taken away.
It is important to seek a way of attaining a legal connection. You may need the assistance of a qualified electrical engineer to find out what is the most cost effective way. There are no guarantees of a quick solution. If there is a possible solution it is important to act quickly as what so often happens is there can be a change in the politics/laws that close the window of opportunity for a legal connection.
. You live in an area where there is not an electricity line near your home.
-First you should make an application to Iberdrola for a connection.
-If there is not a point of connection you will need to consider having a transformer installed. This is quite expensive but it can serve a large number of properties so if you have other properties around then the expense can be shared. If no one is willing to share the cost then it is possible to install the transformer and charge any future person who desires to connect to it. An engineers plan will be necessary and licences etc. It can take considerable time for this to go through.
Alternatives,
Solar and wind turbine electricity are a good alternative. They have there limitations and the initial outlay can be expensive but prices are dropping & the instillations are improving. It is important to talk to a registered electrical engeneer who is qualified to advise on the possible alternatives.