Periodic inspections (EICR)
Periodic condition reporting explained.
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An Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR) on your home electrics is not currently a legal requirement, however in the case of dwellings it is recommended in BS7671 that you have your installation properly inspected at least every ten years.
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For offices, shops and properties being rented, an inspection up to every five years or upon a change of occupancy the laws have changed. Please see the government's Guide for landlords: electrical safety standards in the private rented sector Updated 19 June 2020, here.
An EICR will involve the inspection and testing of all of your final circuits, your consumer unit(s), the protective devices, the suppliers' service head & earthing arrangements, and the earth bonding. The report you receive will classify the overall installation as satisfactory or unsatisfactory as deemed appropriate by the inspector. Any deviations from the regulations will either be coded as C1, danger present, C2, potentially dangerous, C3, improvement recommended or FI, Further Investigation required without delay. Any C1, C2 or FI observation would result in an ‘unsatisfactory’ verdict being passed on the installation as a whole.
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Previous/next inspection dates.
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The date of any previous inspection, along with the date that the next inspection is due, should be visible on a sticker affixed at or near to your consumer unit. Note that ten years for dwellings and five years for offices/shops is the maximum period between inspections as prescribed by BS7671, however the re-inspection date is at the discretion of the inspector. If there are items that may need monitoring such as low insulation resistance readings, then an issuer may issue a shorter reinspection date to ensure the condition is monitored and not getting worse.
When new consumer unit is installed, then it should display one of these stickers.
Extent and limitations.
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It may not be possible for the inspector to thoroughly examine every aspect of a given electrical installation. E.g. cables concealed within the fabric of the building can’t be visually inspected or move items of fitted furniture which are in the way, however the extent and limitations of the inspection will be agreed with you and any legitimate inspector would aim to provide as comprehensive a report as practicality allows. The EICR paperwork has a section for listing any such limitations.
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Pricing and timing.
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EICR's are priced per circuit, therefore larger or more complicated installations cost more. The price remains the same regardless of whether an installation passes for the maximum term or less, or if it fails outright.
The time it takes for to perform an EICR depends on the size of the installation, but you should allow for it taking at least half a day or more for an average domestic property, and the installation would need to be powered down for most of the tests. To minimise disruption, you should make sure you’re ready for the power to go off.
What to do in the event of an unsatisfactory verdict.
Once all repair work has been carried out, whoever performed the EICR should be able to re-inspect/re-test the corrected part of the installation and, if the work has been performed adequately, they can then issue a ‘satisfactory’ report. If you’ve used different companies for the reporting and repair then you’ll be charged for a revisit by the reporting company.
Why 'Work may be recommended even with a satisfactory report"
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An important factor to bear in mind is that an existing installation does not have to be brought up to the latest standard demanded by BS7671 so long as it is in good condition, is of satisfactory operation and complied with the standards of its time. A large part of changes as part of BS7671 has evolved arround the safety of occupants, i.e. with RCD on all circuits unless excempt, these reduce the risk of an electric shock.
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