To provide a method and a device for selecting/interrupting the load in a consumer in which the loads connected with a branch circuit is prevented from being stopped entirely.

In a consumer having a plurality of loads 12, when the power used by the operating loads 12 exceeds the available power, the operating loads 12 are selected and interrupted in turn starting from a load of lowest priority 18 until the power used by the loads 12 becomes less than the available power, and the interrupted loads 12 which can be recovered without exceeding the available power are selected and recovered in turn starting from a load of highest priority 18.