An improved method of allocating MAC addresses for an electrical distribution network to make it possible to save a great deal of time during the address allocation phase. The method stores, at the central address allocation device, a list of associations between the serial numbers of the devices and the MAC address allocated. The method also sends a cataloging request serving to allocate the MAC address prior to the sending of a communication frame. In this manner, the discovery phases for allocating the MAC addresses to devices without addresses are appreciably reduced. The time when the network is dedicated to such discovery is reduced, thereby increasing accordingly the useful communication time available in the network.