The Property Access Kit – Part 1:5

5. Electrical Safety Checks – the law

Index:

What you need to do
The standard
About the report
What if the inspection shows up a fault?
Who should carry out the inspection?
Penalties for non-compliance

Although mandatory gas safety checks have been with us since 1998, mandatory electricity checks are very recent.

Although that’s not to say that previously there was no legislation about standards.

Landlords are obliged to keep in proper repair the installations for the supply of electricity under the repairing obligation in section 11 of the Landlord & Tenant Act 1985
Electrical hazards is one of the 29 hazards under the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS). Failure to comply can result in a local authority serving Notice under the housing act 2004 (Improvement Notice or Prohibition Order), which if not complied with could result in a civil penalty of up to £30K, prosecution in a Magistrates Court or works in default.
As the HHSRS hazards are incorporated into the fitness for habitation legislation (in England) electrical safety is also part of a landlords obligations under this legislation

However, things changed for England with the passing of the Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020. These came into force for all English tenancies with effect from 1 April 2021.

If your property is based in Wales

You should be registered with Rent Smart Wales, and you should follow their guidance.

The best practice guidance in the RentSmart Code of Practice states: “A check on the electrical installation should be carried out at least once every 5 years by a competent electrician, and the results should be recorded in the form of an EICR.”

In the rest of this section, we will be looking at the regulations for England.

What you need to do

The regulations require English landlords to have the electrical installations in their properties inspected at least every 5 years and tested by a person who is qualified and competent.

After the inspection and testing has been done you must:

obtain a report from the person conducting that inspection and test, which gives the results of the inspection and test and the date of the next inspection and test
supply a copy of that report to each existing tenant of the residential premises within 28 days of the inspection and test
supply a copy of that report to the local housing authority within 7 days of receiving a request in writing for it from that authority
retain a copy of that report at least until the next inspection and test is due (and ideally longer) and supply a copy to the person carrying out the next inspection and test
supply a copy of the most recent report to any new tenant of the specified tenancy to which the report relates before that tenant occupies those premises; and any prospective tenant within 28 days of receiving a request in writing for it from that prospective tenant

You will also need to diarise your next inspection which should be in five years or such shorter time as the electrician may recommend.

The standard

The standard under the regulations is the 18th Edition Wiring Regulations. But your electrical installations do not necessarily need to comply with this, provided they are still safe.

If you have had a report done to the older standard, you should review it to see what was recommended on it and consider how your property has been let since it was carried out.

If big differences to the property have occurred, e.g. high turnover of tenants, DIY work found, flood damage, then it would be prudent to get another electrical safety report done. If no changes have been made, then your report should remain valid until the next inspection date specified.

About the report

The regulations just refer to a report being obtained by the person conducting the inspection and test. Typically, an Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR) is used within the industry for this purpose.

An Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR) is a report carried out to assess the safety of the existing electrical installation within a property and is used to describe its condition.

Parts of the system that are reported on include consumer units, protective bonding, lighting, switches and sockets etc. Its purpose is to confirm as far as possible whether or not the electrical installation is in a safe condition for continued service.

The EICR will show whether the electrical installation is in a ‘satisfactory’ or ‘unsatisfactory’ condition and will give a list of observations affecting safety or requiring improvements. These observations will be supported by codes.

Unsatisfactory Codes are:

C1 – Danger present, risk of injury, immediate remedial action required
C2 – Potentially Dangerous, urgent remedial action required
FI – Further investigation required

A Satisfactory Code is:

C3 – Improvement recommended

Action is required if the EICR issued is unsatisfactory. If an EICR contains a C1, C2 or FI code, it is unsatisfactory. If a C1 is discovered, the electrician will often take action using temporary measures to make the dangerous installation safe. Then, as is also the case with a C2 or FI code, it is the owner’s responsibility to organise a repair, replacement or further investigation within 28 days.

A C3 code, ‘improvement recommended’, is given to aspects of the installation that do not present a danger but will result in an increased safety standard within the property. Occasionally a C3 code may be attributed to an item that does not comply with current regulations but did comply at the time it was installed. A C3 code does not mean the installation is unsafe and should not impose a requirement to have work carried out on the owner. Where there are only C3 observations listed, this will result in a satisfactory EICR being issued.

What if the inspection shows up a fault?

Where an Electrical Installation Safety Report identifies urgent remedial work or requires ‘further investigation’, the private landlord must ensure that the required work is carried out by a qualified and competent person within 28 days (or the period specified in the report if it is less than 28 days).

Starting with the date of the inspection and testing.

The landlord must then:

Obtain written confirmation from a qualified person that further investigative or remedial work has been carried out and that the electrical safety standards are met or the further investigative or remedial work is required
Supply that written confirmation, together with a copy of the report which required the further investigative or remedial work to each existing tenant of the residential premises within 28 days of completion of the further investigative or remedial work, and also to the local housing authority within 28 days of completion of the further investigative or remedial work.

However, provided your electrician has confirmed that the work has been done, you do not need to get the property re-tested at that time.

Who should carry out the inspection?

The Electrical Inspector you employ to undertake the electrical inspection and testing within your property must have:

Adequate insurance. This should include at least £2 million public liability insurance and £250,000 professional indemnity insurance
A qualification covering the current version of the wiring regulations (BS 7671)
A qualification covering the periodic inspection, testing and certification of electrical installations
At least two years’ experience in carrying out periodic inspection and testing

It is recommended that you use someone on NAPIT’s Electrical Inspector register which will ensure that the above criteria are met.

Penalties for non-compliance

If you do not get a satisfactory electrical installation safety report for your property within the timescales outlined within the regulations, or you fail to undertake required remedial work or further investigation within the necessary timeframe, the local housing authority must serve a remedial notice giving the landlord 28 days to take action.

If you fail to take action, the local housing authority can:

Do the required remedial work (subject to being allowed access by the tenant), and recover reasonable costs of the work from the landlord.
They can also impose a financial penalty of up to £30,000.

In reality, they are unlikely to do the work themselves and if they take action against you this will almost certainly be a financial penalty.

The Renters Rights Act 2025 provides for a Landlord Database, which is expected to come into force sometime after late 2026. This will require landlords to provide safety information about the property, including electrical safety certificates. There will be penalties for non-compliance.

Part 1 - Legal Background

Part 2 - Persuasion

Part 3 - Injunctions

Part 4 - Possession claims

Further Information:

Government Guidance

The government has issued guidance for landlords on electrical safety standards in the Private Rented Sector

NAPIT

You can use NAPIT registered electricians to carry out the inspection. See their guidance for landlords.

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