Obtaining an Electrical Safety Certificate for a Property

In England, it is a law that applies to rental properties. An electrical report is used to determine whether electrical installations are safe and well-maintained. If your electrical installation is safe, you will receive a satisfactory report. If not, the report will be unsatisfactory.

Suppose any part of the installation is found to be faulty. In that case, an explanation will be given on how it can be corrected, and a report will be issued.

Yes, regardless of whether it is your home, an office, or a business, you must have an Electrical Service Report on file. Most importantly, It is a legal requirement to have an electrical installation condition report or certificate of electrical safety for rental properties in England.

You will need to contact a qualified electrician to get an electrical safety certificate. London Landlord Certifications has qualified electricians. Contact now to obtain an electrical safety certificate.

The EICR certificate (the electrical installation condition report) is a certificate of electrical safety. You will need to hire qualified and competent electricians to conduct electrical safety inspections. They will issue a certificate after performing the inspection and testing.

The cost of an electrical safety certificate can vary, depending on the location, size of your property, consumer unit and the number of electrical circuits that need to be checked. The average cost of the report can be in London between £110 and £750 plus VAT.

Only an electrician who is competent and qualified can inspect and issue a certificate of electrical or report.

The electrical installation condition report will show if the electrical installation is safe to use. In fact, the report will provide information that can easily be used by the landlord, who will not have to perform any additional work unless needed.
There are a number of classification codes used by electricians to identify whether or not a landlord must undertake remedial work. Please find them below:

Code 1 (C1): Danger present. Risk of injury.

Code 2 (C2): Potentially dangerous.

Further Investigation (FI): Further investigation is required without delay.

Code 3 (C3): Improvement recommended.

Remedial work must be performed if code C1 or code C2 is present in the report.

The EICR will show that the installation should be considered as unsatisfactory.

If an inspector identifies that further investigative work is required (FI), the landlord must also ensure this is carried out.

The landlord must also take appropriate steps to carry out if an inspector identifies that further investigative work is required ( FI).

The C3 code does not require any remedial work but only improves it. If the landlord carried out these improvements, the safety of the electrical system would increase.

Not necessarily. But, you must carry out any required work or request a further investigation no later than 28 days of receiving the safety report. It would be best if you got a written confirmation from the electrical installer you use to do any remedial work to prove the required works have been completed, and this confirmation must be kept with the unsatisfactory report. It is ideal to have a Satisfactory report.

If you own your own home, you don’t need an electrical inspection. But, there’s still a chance you could be electrocuted. So, it’s wise to inspect your home every five to ten years.

From 1 April 2021, in all cases where the regulations apply to a private tenant’s main or only residence.

Yes. The EICR will reveal any faulty electrical work, identify fire hazards, and determine whether any circuits are overloaded and potentially dangerous. Repeal of the old legislation makes it mandatory for HMO landlords to follow new regulations from 1 June 2020.

Currently, there is no requirement for social housing to conduct an electrical inspection or certification every 5 years, although many regulations cover it as part of the well-being of housing.

You will need an electrical installation certificate if the property has just been built or completely rewired, which you’ll need to provide to local authorities as well as your tenants.

A landlord does not have to carry out further investigations or reports for 5 years after issuing an EIC as long as they have fulfilled their legal obligations.

If a local authority reasonably believes that a landlord has breached one or more of the obligations under the Regulations, they must serve a Remedial Notice on the landlord that explains the problem(s) and describes the actions that must be taken to fix it.

If the landlord doesn’t do as they are asked, the local authority may intervene on their behalf.

The local authority can recover the expenses associated with action from the landlords. Still, landlords may have the right to appeal against a demand for costs.

Yes, it is. All landlords must get each of their rental properties inspected every 5 years, and they must keep the reports for the following:

• Their record
• Tenants
• Prospective tenants
• Local authorities

The EICR should include the following and need to be checked every 5 years:

• Light fittings
• Wiring
• Plug sockets
• Fuse boxes
• Permanently connected equipment – such as extractor fans, cooker and showers.

Landlords who violate electrical safety regulations face severe consequences. Local authorities can fine landlords up to £30,000 if they don’t follow the rules.

If a landlord can demonstrate that they have taken all reasonable steps to comply with a remedial notice, they are not in violation of their duty.
The landlord could demonstrate reasonable steps by keeping copies of all communications with tenants and electricians as they attempted to arrange the work, as well as any responses they received.

While attempting to arrange repairs, landlords may want to provide other evidence that the installation is in good working order. The servicing history and previous safety reports could be included.

Yes. Not at all if it is deemed to be safe. According to the 18th edition, the wiring installations made under previous editions of the regulations are not required to meet every part of the new ones. They could still be safe for further use.

For continued use, the electrical installation must be safe. In practice, if the report does not require any remediation work or further investigation or, the landlord will not be required to do so.

At least every 5 years or change of occupancy. This can be shorter, please check your electrical installation condition report or certificate of electrical safety for further information.

As a landlord, it is your legal responsibility to ensure that all electrical equipment in your rental property is safe and well-maintained throughout the tenancy.

An unsafe appliance can result in the criminal neglecting a lack of proper maintenance, which can lead to a fine of £5,000, up to life imprisonment, and fines on all individuals involved in death if resulting in manslaughter