Federal Pacific panel replacement in Worcester

The wire inspector has to sign before National Grid will put the meter back. That sequence is the job, not a sidebar. Your letter only named the brand.

Inspectional Services issues the electrical permit. National Grid will not reseal until that inspector signs. A helper with a van cannot print that permit or file the Electric Service Request Form.

What National Grid actually wrote

Start with the Massachusetts electric-service-upgrade page. Work with a licensed electrician before you file. The electrician confirms whether an upgrade is needed and coordinates scope with the company.

The Electric Service Request Form starts the utility ticket. Email is workrequest@nationalgrid.com. Phone is 1-800-375-7405, Monday through Friday, 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

The MA and RI metering guidelines keep a no-jumper policy. Coordination with the municipal inspector’s approval is how National Grid completes the meter work. Company-owned meters are not for homeowners to pull.

Confirm the logo on the bill. Most Worcester addresses are National Grid.

National Grid does not publish a guaranteed power-off hour count. Bergeron describes three to six hours off on most residential jobs. Reece describes four to six hours off while the utility reconnects. Those are contractor field notes.

Permits inside Worcester and in the nearby towns

Inside the city, start at Inspectional Services, Building and Zoning, 25 Meade Street. Electrical permits are issued there.

Who pulls the permit matters. Worcester’s page requires a tradesperson license and workers-compensation documents on the file or attached to the application. The 780 CMR 110.R5 note on that page is a building-supervisor exemption for building permits. It is not an electrical-permit path. Chapter 141, section 1A requires a license to engage in the business of installing wires. That section does not create a homeowner electrical-permit path on the Worcester page we used.

Shrewsbury, Auburn, Millbury, Grafton, and Holden file with their own wiring inspectors. A quote that only says “we handle the permit” should name the city on the address.

Price, without inventing one

Two Worcester contractor pages publish installed bands, and they do not match. Bergeron’s service-change FAQ prints $4,500 to $6,500 for electrical panel upgrades in Worcester, depending on current panel size, new service size, meter-base condition, and extra grounding or service-entrance work.

Reece’s 2026 Massachusetts table prints $2,500 to $4,500 for a 100-amp to 200-amp upgrade. The same table prints $2,500 to $5,000 for a Federal Pacific or Zinsco replacement, and $1,800 to $3,000 for a same-amperage 200-amp swap. Those two systems do not match. We will not average them. We are not inventing a third Worcester midpoint from either table.

Massachusetts license lookup is public. Ask for the Master Electrician number and check it on the Board of State Examiners of Electricians before you sign. Two shops advertise this work on their own sites and print a license number. Bergeron’s Worcester County page names Federal Pacific and Zinsco and prints 21807-A. Reece’s Worcester page names the same brands and prints 9036A1. They are listed for the panel letter, not as a Central Massachusetts directory.

Directory-only shops are omitted. A page that names these brands and does not print a Massachusetts electrical license number is not a listing. The listed shops are not affiliated with Panel Letter.

What to hand the carrier

The useful packet is the closed city or town electrical permit, the passed wiring-inspector sign-off, an invoice with the license number that was on the permit, and photos if the letter asks. If your electrician produces a load calculation or panel schedule, send that too. We did not find a carrier page that publishes a single statewide sticker form. Ask the agent what they will actually open.