HOUSEHOLDERS who suffered lengthy power cuts after the New Year's Eve snowstorms in North Yorkshire may be entitled to compensation.

More than 50,000 homes across the region were cut off when snow, ice and wind brought down power lines, with North Yorkshire one of the worst affected counties. Some customers in parts of the county waited up to two days for supplies to be restored.

Power distributor NEDL said the final properties were reconnected by the early hours of Saturday.

It said it would be contacting customers to explain what had happened, and would consider claims for compensation.

Donald Wilkinson, from Westow, near Malton, had his electricity restored at 2.15pm on Friday after it went off at midnight on New Year's Eve.

"It has been pretty grim," he said. "We lost the heating and struggled to keep warm. We've been sat round my camping stove."

Joyce Walker, from Terrington, suffered a power cut just 30 minutes before the start of the New Year. It was restored at 6.30am the following morning.

"It was an awful time for the electricity to go," she said. "The house has been really, really cold."

A spokeswoman for NEDL said: "We would like to apologise to our customers who have experienced problems with their supplies due to the severe weather conditions. We will be writing to all affected customers."

NEDL customers who lost electricity for an extended period may be able to claim compensation as a result of guidelines set out by industry regulator Ofgem. Those whose electricity supply is cut off for more than 48 hours can claim £25. For each subsequent 12-hour period, a further £25 can be claimed.

NEDL says that customers wishing to claim under this scheme should telephone (0800) 1692996 or write to NEDL, Manor House, Station Road, New Penshaw DH4 7LA.

Updated: 10:47 Wednesday, January 07, 2004