Emergency electrician cost
An emergency electrician costs $150 to $400 an hour against $80 to $180 in business hours. Most electrical faults wait until morning; the ones where something is hot, burning or sparking do not.
National average
$250
per hour
On this page
- What the premium looks like
- Call tonight
- Wait until morning
- What to do while you wait
- Two faults worth recognising
- Frequently asked questions
- Is the utility or the electrician responsible?
- Will insurance cover fire or surge damage?
- Can I reset a tripped breaker myself?
- The lights dim when the air conditioning starts. Is that dangerous?
- Should I get a whole-house surge protector?
An emergency electrician costs $150 to $400 an hour against $80 to $180 in business hours, plus a call-out of $150 to $350 before anyone opens a tool bag. Holidays sit at the top of both.
Most electrical faults can wait until morning. The ones that cannot are the ones where something is hot, burning or sparking, and those are worth calling about immediately.
What the premium looks like
| Business hours | After hours | |
|---|---|---|
| Service call | $100 to $250 | $150 to $350 |
| Hourly rate | $80 to $180 | $150 to $400 |
| Tracing a dead circuit | $150 to $400 | $300 to $800 |
| Replacing a breaker | $150 to $400 | $300 to $700 |
| Repairing a damaged cable | $200 to $700 | $400 to $1,400 |
| Replacing a burnt outlet or switch | $150 to $350 | $280 to $650 |
| Panel repair | $300 to $1,200 | $600 to $2,200 |
| Restoring a failed service entrance | $800 to $3,000 | $1,500 to $5,000 |
Call tonight
- Burning smell from an outlet, a switch, a light or the panel. Switch off that circuit if you can identify it, and call.
- Scorch marks or discolouration around an outlet or on the panel.
- Sparks from anything other than the momentary spark of a plug going in.
- Buzzing or crackling from the panel or a switch.
- A hot outlet, switch plate or cable. Warm is worth investigating; hot is now.
- A breaker that trips immediately every time it is reset, which means a short.
- Water reaching wiring, a panel or outlets, from a burst pipe or a flood.
- A shock from an appliance, tap or the panel, however small.
- Half the house dead with the main breaker on, which often means a failing neutral and can damage every appliance in the house.
- The service cable to the house damaged or down. Ring the utility first; the cable to the meter is theirs.
Wait until morning
- One dead outlet with the rest of the circuit working
- A breaker that tripped once and reset normally
- A light fixture that has stopped working
- A switch that has become intermittent
- Flickering that has been happening for weeks
- Anything you can simply switch off and leave off
Waiting typically saves $200 to $700.
What to do while you wait
If you can identify the circuit, switch it off at the panel and leave it off. If you cannot, and there is a burning smell, switch off the main and use torches.
Unplug what is on the affected circuit. A failing neutral or a surge can destroy electronics, and unplugging is free.
Do not reset a breaker repeatedly. A breaker that trips is doing its job, and forcing it back is how a fault becomes a fire.
Never open the panel cover. The main lugs stay live even with the main breaker off, and that is the part that kills people.
Two faults worth recognising
A failing neutral presents as lights brightening and dimming as appliances switch on, or as half the house behaving oddly. It means the neutral connection at the panel or the utility side has degraded, and voltage swings between circuits. It can destroy every electronic device in the house in an evening. This is a genuine emergency and it is often mistaken for a utility problem, which sometimes it is.
Aluminium branch wiring, used in houses built roughly 1965 to 1973, expands and contracts at connections and loosens over decades. Warm switch plates, flickering, and a burning smell at a device are the signs. It is a known fire risk and the remedy is copper pigtailing with approved connectors at every device, $2,000 to $8,000 for a house.
Frequently asked questions
Is the utility or the electrician responsible?
Roughly: the utility owns the line up to and including the meter; you own everything from the meter into the house. If the cable to the house is down or the meter is damaged, ring the utility first, and they usually attend free and quickly.
Will insurance cover fire or surge damage?
Fire damage generally yes. Surge damage to appliances is often covered with a limit, and gradual wear is not. A whole-house surge protector is $300 to $700 fitted and is one of the better small investments in an older house.
Can I reset a tripped breaker myself?
Once, yes: switch it fully off, then on. If it trips again immediately, stop. That is a short circuit and it needs someone.
The lights dim when the air conditioning starts. Is that dangerous?
A brief dip on a large motor start is normal. Persistent dimming, brightening, or dimming that has recently got worse is not, and it points at a loose connection or a failing neutral.
Should I get a whole-house surge protector?
If you have had surge damage, if you are in a lightning-prone area, or if you are having panel work done anyway, yes. It fits in or beside the panel for $300 to $700 and protects everything downstream.
Read next
Aluminum wiring repair cost$2,000 to $8,000per projectRemediating aluminium branch wiring costs $2,000 to $8,000, typically $4,000. It was installed in roughly two million American homes between 1965 and 1973, and it is not a defect you can ignore.
Electrical inspection cost$200 to $600per eachAn electrical inspection costs $200 to $600, typically $350. It is the cheapest way to find out whether the wiring in a house is a maintenance item or a five-figure project.
Smoke detector installation cost$80 to $350per eachSmoke detectors cost $80 to $200 per unit hardwired, or $15 to $60 for a battery unit you fit yourself. They also expire after ten years, whether or not they have ever detected anything.
Electrical panel upgrade cost$1,500 to $6,000per projectUpgrading from 100 to 200 amps costs $1,500 to $6,000, typically $2,800. Replacing a panel at the same amperage is cheaper, and knowing which job you need is most of the decision.
Whole house surge protector cost$300 to $700per eachA whole-house surge protector costs $300 to $700 installed. It does not replace the power strips at your desk; the two work together, and knowing why is most of what there is to know.