Why these Ontario homeowners' TVs 'fried' from power outages

Two Ontario men were surprised after their large flat-screen TVs were ruined from surges due to separate electrical power outages.

"When I came home, I found out my Smart TV was broken. It was not working anymore as it was caught in a power cycle as a result of a power outage," Artak Arzumanyan of Pickering told CTV News Toronto.

Arzumanyan had to buy a new TV, and his "fried," three-year-old television now sits in his basement.

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The $1,600 TV will turn on, but it shuts off and quickly fades to black.   

"You can turn it on, but after a few seconds, it turns off, and you cannot use this TV anymore," said Arzumanyan.

Arzumanyan said he used a surge protector, a product meant to protect his electronic devices from excess voltage damage. He said he feels his electricity provider, Elexicon Energy, should replace his TV, so he filed a claim with the electricity provider's insurance company.

"I think they have to take responsibility for what happened," said Arzumanyan.

But, Arzumanyan's claim was denied.

A spokesperson from Elexicon Energy explained to CTV News Toronto that on Sept. 4, 2023, about 27,000 of its customers in Ajax, Pickering, and Whitby experienced many power outages within an hour. The outages were caused by a "load complication" at a HydroOne transformer station, which feeds upstream electrical supply to Elexicon Energy.

"Any customer claim regarding damaged electronics during these unplanned outages was promptly sent to Elexicon's insurer, The MEARIE Group, for consideration. MEARIE denied any such claims, stating in its response that Elexicon had no control over these power outages as they resulted from a loss of supply from HydroOne," the spokesperson said.

"We understand that power interruptions and voltage fluctuations are an inconvenience. Our dedicated teams strive to safeguard the electricity grid from outages, however, there are circumstances that are beyond our control that cause interruptions and fluctuations. We encourage customers to consider proactive measures to better protect their appliances and home electronics by installing a home panel surge protector and/or plug-in surge protectors to reduce potential impact from unforeseen outages."

In a separate incident, Brian Brodhagen of Brantford also experienced power surge damage to his TV despite using a surge protector. Brodhagen told CTV News there had been issues with power surges in his building, and when his TV was damaged, he wanted his building to pay to repair or replace it.

"The left side of the TV was light and the right side was dark and there was no picture. I want them to fix it," said Brodhagen.

When Brodhagen asked his apartment building to replace the set, he was told to file a claim through his tenant insurance, which he didn't want to do. 

"When you put a claim through insurance, your insurance goes up, and I don't feel I should have to pay for it," said Brodhagen.

Rich Fisco, a technology expert with Consumer Reports, says surge protectors do not work 100 per cent of the time. He said they can expire or require replacing, depending on how much they have been used.

"Surge protectors actually do have an expiry date," said Fisco.

Fisco said surge protectors may have to be replaced every three to five years as they wear out protecting devices. A big jolt from a power outage could render one ineffective.

"It's like it gives up its life to protect the TV. When it's done, that's it – it's done. It's not coming back and it's time to get a new one," said Fisco.

Arzumanyan said he still feels his electricity provider should be held accountable for the damaging power surge which ruined his TV.

"I'm not expecting them to pay for my new TV or full price for my old TV, but I did expect them to take some responsibility for what happened," said Arzumanyan.