If you’re a landlord anywhere in England, the electrical safety rules that came in a few years back apply to you, and we still meet plenty of landlords round St Helens and Wigan who aren’t quite sure what they need. So here’s the straightforward version.
An EICR, an Electrical Installation Condition Report, is a full inspection and test of the fixed wiring in a property. We check the consumer unit, the circuits, the earthing and bonding, and the RCD protection, then we test everything and write up a report. Anything we find gets a code: C1 means danger present and needs sorting now, C2 means potentially dangerous, and C3 is a recommendation rather than a fail.
For rented homes the law says you need a satisfactory report at least every five years, and at the start of a new tenancy. “Satisfactory” means no C1 or C2 codes outstanding. If the report comes back with any of those, you’ve got 28 days to get the remedial work done and proof supplied to your tenant. You have to give a copy of the report to tenants and, if asked, to the local authority.
There’s a real reason behind it, mind. Faulty electrics are a genuine fire and shock risk, and a clean report protects you as much as your tenants if anything ever goes wrong.
We do landlord EICRs across Merseyside, Warrington and Cheshire, and we’ll quote any remedials separately and clearly. Give us a ring to get booked in before your certificate runs out.