The topic of this thesis was linear surge arresters, i.e. their features and application. As their task is to protect against overvoltage, in the second chapter the concept of overvoltage is explained, the basic types of overvoltage are mentioned and the concept of reverse jump, which is caused by atmospheric overvoltage caused by a lightning strike, is explained. The third chapter is dedicated to the classic ways of protecting the lines, which are no longer sufficient due to the increasing demands of consumers for high-quality delivery of electricity. The function of the protective rope and protective spark gap is briefly described, and the possibility of improving the grounding resistance is mentioned. In the fourth chapter, we moved on to the main topic of the diploma thesis, to line surge arresters. Since the main part of modern line surge arresters is actually a metal-oxide surge arrester, which has been used in plants for a long time, its main features are listed, its construction is explained and basic data is given. The general working principles and construction of two types of line surge arresters used in the world are described, and a comparison of their efficiency in protection against atmospheric surges is given. The success of line surge arresters in line protection is confirmed in the fifth chapter, which shows the results achieved by simulation in the ATP-EMTP software package. In the sixth chapter, some experiences in the application of surge arresters on power lines in the world and in the Republic of Croatia are presented, from which it is evident that the application of line surge arresters has achieved excellent results.