How to Claim Compensation After an Electric Shock Death in Pakistan

Short answer: When a person dies of an electric shock and NEPRA finds the electricity company at fault, NEPRA can order the company to pay the family the same amount it pays an employee's family. It did this at SEPCO in 2021 (Rs 3.5 million a family) and at LESCO in 2024 (Rs 4.0 million, plus a job for next of kin). There is no fixed rate. Each order covers one case.

A fallen wire after rain. A sagging line over a rooftop. A pole with no earth. Most families never learn that a regulator can look at the death, and that it has ordered companies to pay.

We read NEPRA's press release on the SEPCO order and its 18 page order on LESCO on 12 October 2026. This guide explains what those papers say and what a family can do. It is general information, not legal advice.

NEPRA has ordered companies to pay public families

In two orders we read, NEPRA found that the electricity company paid compensation to the families of its own dead staff, but not to families of members of the public. It told each company to pay the public families the same amount, and to send proof to NEPRA.

These are orders in specific cases, not a price list. A future case can come out differently.

Not every death leads to compensation

NEPRA looks at each death and asks whether the company's lapse caused it. In the LESCO order, some deaths were put under "others". One was a person who was electrocuted while trying to steal a transformer. Another touched scaffolding that had fallen on a live feeder.

That is why records matter. The family has a better case if the facts show a broken wire, a missing earth, a pole in poor condition or an illegal switching act by company staff.

The company must report each fatal accident

Under the NEPRA Performance Standards (Distribution) Rules, 2005, each company must report incidents that cause death, permanent disability or serious injury, and Form 9 asks for each one to be reported immediately. In the SEPCO case NEPRA also found that the company had not reported the deaths in the prescribed way.

For NEPRA to act, a death needs to reach it. Companies report their own incidents, but a family complaint puts the case on the record in the family's own words.

What a family can do, step by step

Keep proof of the death and its cause. Write to the electricity company. Then file a complaint with NEPRA that names the company, the place, the date and the person, and asks NEPRA to examine the death. NEPRA's form takes an attachment of a PDF or JPG up to 2.5 MB.

1. Keep the hospital paper, the police report and any photographs of the scene, taken only when it is safe.
2. Note names of witnesses and the time and place of the incident.
3. Write to the company's sub-divisional office and the company's head office, and keep a stamped copy.
4. File a complaint on NEPRA's online form, with these papers. Say you are asking NEPRA to examine the death as a fatal accident.
5. Ask what compensation the company pays its own staff in a fatal accident, because NEPRA has used that as the measure.
6. Talk to a lawyer about a court claim as well. The orders do not stop a family from going to court.

Our guides on making a NEPRA complaint and the NEPRA Asaan Approach app show how the forms work.

If you see a fallen wire, stay away and report it

Do not touch a wire on the ground, a pole that is sparking, or anything it is touching. Stay well back, keep others away and call the company at once. Our guide to reporting a fallen wire or sparking pole has the steps.

During rain the risk is higher. Our piece on electrocution deaths in the monsoon covers the safety side.

Common questions

How much compensation will a family get?

There is no fixed amount. NEPRA has ordered Rs 3.5 million per family at SEPCO in 2021 and the same as the staff amount, Rs 4.0 million, at LESCO in 2024. A later case may be different.

Does NEPRA order compensation for injuries as well as deaths?

The orders we read concern deaths. The reporting rules cover death, permanent disability and serious injury, so an injury can be reported too. We did not find a NEPRA order on injury compensation.

Can I go to court as well?

Yes. Nothing in the orders stops a family from going to court. Ask a lawyer what is best for your case.

Who files the complaint if the victim was a child?

A parent or guardian can file it. NEPRA's form asks for the complainant's CNIC and address, so use the adult's details and name the victim in the text.

What if the company says the victim was stealing electricity?

NEPRA looks at the facts. In the LESCO order the death of a person who was stealing a transformer was put under "others". Ask NEPRA to examine the scene records and the company's own inquiry.

Is there a time limit?

NEPRA's form says a complaint older than one year should go in writing to the Director General Consumer Affairs. Do not wait, because records are easier to get early.

How we verified this

What we checked, where we read it, and what we could not confirm.

We read NEPRA's press release of 7 September 2021 on the SEPCO fine and NEPRA's order on LESCO dated 5 July 2024 on nepra.org.pk on 12 October 2026. We did not verify what any company pays today. The LESCO order text speaks of four public persons, while its own case table lists three, so we do not give a head count for that order.