CUMMING, Ga. — Lynn Kaden expected an ordinary Saturday night at home. Instead, she says she spent the evening watching lights flicker, alarms sound throughout the house, and appliances fail one after another.
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“Alarms start going off, lights start blinking in all parts of the house,” Kaden said.
She later learned the problem was what Georgia Power described as an underground neutral failure serving her home.
A neutral line helps balance the electrical system. When it malfunctions, voltage can fluctuate and damage appliances.
Kaden said the event affected her refrigerator, stove, HVAC system, irrigation controls, ceiling fans, smoke detectors, outlets, and lighting throughout the house. She estimates the repairs and replacements have cost approximately $6,700.
“It just really wreaked havoc on so many of my appliances,” Kaden said.
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In a letter denying her property damage claim, Georgia Power acknowledged that its investigation found “the issue originated from an underground equipment failure – bad neutral serving your location.”
However, the utility concluded the failure “could not have been reasonably foreseen or prevented” and therefore did not constitute negligence. Because the company found no evidence of negligence, it denied her reimbursement claim.
“I just couldn’t understand how I’m responsible for $6,700 by just sitting and watching my television,” Kaden said.
In response to questions from Channel 2 Action News, Georgia Power said it generally handles property damage claims through an internal claims process. The company said it cannot publicly discuss specific claims.
Consumer advocate Clark Howard said the homeowner is caught in a difficult position because Georgia Power acknowledges the equipment failure but disputes liability.
“Here’s the homeowner out almost $7,000 and basically feeling ignored and pushed back against,” Howard said.
Kaden said she is frustrated at the decision, as there is nothing she says she could have done to prevent the damage.
“I am OK with being responsible on my end (if an issue happened in the house). And I take responsibility for that,” she said. “But this was through no fault of mine, and I really do think that they should be accountable for this.”
For now, Kaden says she is left paying the repair bills while continuing to seek answers about how the failure happened in the first place.
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