The cause of a brownout depends on whether it is a: (1) Planned Brownout or an (2) Unplanned Brownout.

A Planned Brownout allows us to conduct maintenance activities, upgrade line and/or substation equipment and facilities, relocate facilities as necessitated by government projects (e.g., road widening), or construct and extend facilities to serve additional customers. If you’re going to be affected by this type of brownout, we will advise you at least 72 hours before the actual time of service interruption.

An Unplanned Brownout is usually a result of emergency conditions that lead to a service interruption. It may be caused by factors that are beyond our control, such as generation deficiency, adverse weather conditions, and/or foreign objects coming into contact with power lines and equipment. Failure of line hardware, components and devices directly connected to power lines also cause this type of brownout. If you are affected by this, you can view and monitor the status via the Outage map. If there is no available brownout information on the map, you may file a report through the brownout reporting form.

There are several types of safety concerns, but the more commonly reported ones are as follows:

1. Pole is broken – the Meralco pole is either damaged or is dangerously leaning
2. Pole has fallen - the Meralco pole is lying on the ground
3. Wire is sparking – the Meralco wire is producing flashes of light accompanied by a sharp cracking noise
4. Wire has fallen – the Meralco wire is lying on the ground
5. Wire is loose, damaged or detached –there is either damages to the wire or the wire is disconnected from the Meralco pole
6. Something blew up – there was an explosion near a Meralco facility (e.g. wires or equipment attached to the Meralco pole) which may result in a brownout
7. Pole obstructing - a Meralco pole lying on the ground, blocking the road
8. Wire obstructing – a Meralco wire is lying on the ground, blocking the road

You can report a brownout by filling out and submitting an online form, which is available on Meralco Online or Meralco Mobile App. Simply log in to your account and go to the Outages & Incidents section. Alternatively, you can visit our website at www.meralco.com.ph and access the online report form as a guest. For a step-by-step guide, please refer to the instructions below.

1. Via Meralco Online
   1. Log in to Meralco Online.
   2. Click on “Outages & Incidents"
   3. Select “View/Report Outages"
   4. Check if the brownout you would like to report is reflected in the map. If not, you have the option to report it.
   5. Click on “Report an outage” located inside the information box. The information box is displayed by default.
   6. Select your concern type either
      No Power – My house/building,
      No Power – Whole street/block
   7. Select the appropriate answer to the question that will appear based on your concern type
   8. Optional: Upload up to 5 photos of your concern. Each file must be in PDF, PNG, JPG or BMP format and must not exceed 5MB
   9. Specify the location of your brownout by
      1. Selecting an enrolled Service ID Number (if you only have one, this field will be pre-populated)
      2. Entering an unenrolled Service ID Number
      3. Entering an address
   10. Provide landmarks or directions to help us find your location faster OR
   11. Pin the location of your reported concern on the map
   12. Enter the details of the contact person for your report. Fields are pre-populated with your registered details, but these can be edited.
   13. Specify how you want to receive notifications related to your report by selecting either the “Email” and/or “SMS” button.
   14. Click the “Submit” button
   15. You will be directed to a confirmation page, acknowledging receipt of your report. You will also receive an acknowledgment via SMS and/or email, depending on your preferred channel.


2. Via Meralco Mobile App
   1. Log in to Meralco Mobile App
   2. Tap the menu icon found on the upper left-hand corner of the Overview page.
   3. Click on “Outages & Incidents"
   4. Select “View/Report outages"
   5. Check if the brownout you would like to report is reflected in the map. If not, you have the option to report it.
   6. Click on “Report an outage” located inside the information box
   7. Select your concern type either
      No Power – My house/building,
      No Power – Whole street/block
   8. Select the appropriate answer to the question that will appear based on your concern type
   9. Optional: Upload up to 5 photos of your concern. Each file must be in PDF, PNG, JPG or BMP format and must not exceed 5MB.
   10. Specify the location of your brownout by:
       1. Selecting an enrolled Service ID Number (if you only have one, this field will be pre-populated)
       2. Entering an unenrolled Service ID Number
       3. Entering an address
   11. Provide landmarks or directions to help us find your location faster OR
   12. Pin the location of your reported concern on the map
   13. Enter the details of the contact person for your report. Fields are pre-populated with your registered details, but these can be edited.
   14. Specify how you want to receive notifications related to your report by selecting either the “Email” and/or “SMS” button.
   15. Click the “Submit” button.
   16. You will be directed to a confirmation page, acknowledging receipt of your report. You will also receive an acknowledgment via SMS and/or email, depending on your preferred channel.


3. Via Meralco Website (as a Guest User)
   1. Visit www.meralco.com.ph
   2. Click on “View/Report outages” in the upper right-hand corner of the homepage.
   3. Check if the brownout you would like to report is reflected in the map. If not, you have the option to report it.
   4. Click on “Report an outage” located inside the information box.
   5. Select your concern type either
      No Power – My house/building,
      No Power – Whole street/block
   6. Select the appropriate answer to the question that will appear based on your concern type.
   7. 7. Optional: Upload up to 5 photos of your concern. Each file must be in PDF, PNG, JPG or BMP format and must not exceed 5MB.
   8. Specify the location of your brownout by:
      1. Entering a Service ID Number
      2. Entering an address
   9. Provide landmarks or directions to help us find your location faster OR.
   10. Pin the location of your reported concern on the map.
   11. Enter the details of the contact person for your report.
   12. Specify how you want to receive notifications related to your report by selecting either the “Email” and/or “SMS” radio button.
   13. Read and agree to the Meralco Online Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy by ticking the box
   14. Click the “Submit” button.
   15. You will be directed to a confirmation page, acknowledging receipt of your report. You will also receive an acknowledgment via SMS and/or email, depending on your preferred channel.

1. Via Meralco Online
   1. Log in to Meralco Online
   2. Click on “Outages & Incidents”
   3. Select “View/Report Outages"
   4. Specify if you want to view brownouts by Service ID Number or Address by clicking on the appropriate radio button under ‘Search outages by:
      Note: Suggest to click on “Legend” dropdown to know what the icons on the map symbolize
   5. Click on the brownout icon on the map to view the details of the brownout (if any) that may affect your service or address
   6. Optional: Click on “Future outages” to see planned brownouts that may affect your service or address in the near-future
   7. Optional: Click on “Report an outage” to report brownouts affecting your service or address that are not yet reflected in the map
   8. Optional: Click on “Report an outage” to report brownouts affecting your service or address that are not yet reflected in the map


2. Via Meralco Mobile App
   1. Log in to Meralco Mobile App
   2. Tap the menu icon found on the upper left-hand corner of the Overview page.
   3. Click on “Outages & Incidents"
   4. Select “View/Report outages"
   5. Specify if you want to view brownouts by Service ID Number or Address by clicking on the appropriate radio button under ‘Search outages by:’
      Note: Suggest to click on “Legend” dropdown to know what the icons on the map symbolize
   6. Click on the brownout icon on the map to view the details of the brownout (if any) that may affect your service or address
   7. Optional: Click on “Future outages” to see planned brownouts that may affect your service or address in the near-future
   8. Optional: Click on “Report a brownout” to report brownouts affecting your service or address that are not yet reflected in the map
   9. Optional: Click on “Summary of Reports” to track the status of reports you have filed through Meralco Mobile App.


3. Via Meralco Website (as a Guest User)
   1. Visit www.meralco.com.ph
   2. Click on “View/Report outages” in the upper right-hand corner of the homepage
   3. Specify if you want to view brownouts affecting your current address or another address by clicking on the appropriate radio button under ‘Search outages by: Address’
      Note: Suggest to click on “Legend” dropdown to know what the brownout icons on the map symbolize
   4. Click on the brownout icon on the map to view the details of the brownout (if any) that may affect your service or address
   5. Optional: Click on “Future outages” to see planned brownouts that may affect your service or address in the near-future
   6. Optional: Click on “Report an outage” to report brownouts affecting your service or address that are not yet reflected in the map
   7. Optional: Click on “Track Your Outage Report” to track the status of reports you have filed

The Estimated Time of Restoration (ETR) is provided through SMS and/or email to customers affected by a brownout, depending on the severity and extent of the brownout. Estimates may change from time to time during the restoration process depending on the number of work orders assigned to crews or the severity of the brownout, based on the crew’s assessment of the damage. Nevertheless, we exert all effort to ensure that power is restored on or before the given ETR.

Based on historical data, we measured the approximate time it takes to restore the power of customers affected by a brownout. The approximate time is dependent on the extent and severity of the brownout. This historical data was used to provide the ETR for a known brownout.  

It is important to note though that estimates may change from time to time during the restoration process. This will depend on the number of work orders assigned to crews or the severity of the brownout, based on the crew’s assessment of the damage. Nevertheless, we exert all effort to ensure that power is restored on or before the given ETR.

We have a structured approach in restoring power. Depending on their extent or severity, brownouts are monitored and managed either by our System Control team or Sector Operations team. As soon as brownouts are detected, we dispatch crews to investigate the cause. Crews arriving on-site will assess the damage and necessary repair, then have the power restored.

Once you register to Meralco Online, you will receive brownout advisories on power interruptions affecting your enrolled service/s. These will be sent via SMS by default, but you can log in to your account to easily change or select your notification preferences.

For a step-by-step guide, please refer to the instructions below.

1. Via Meralco Online
   1. Log in to Meralco Online
   2. Click on the arrow next to your name on the upper right-hand corner
   3. Select “My Profile"
   4. Click on the “Notification Settings” tab
   5. Tick the “Email” and/or “SMS” box for Outage Advisories
   6. Click the “Save” button


2. Via Meralco Mobile App
   1. Log in to Meralco Mobile App
   2. Tap the menu icon found on the upper left-hand corner of the Overview page
   3. Tap "Settings"
   4. Scroll down to "Preferred Communication Channels"
   5. Tap the plus sign (+) beside “Outage Advisories”
   6. Tap the toggle buttons for Email, SMS and Push Notification to enable or disable Outage Advisories.
   7. Tap the "Save Preferences" button.