If you are living in a privately rented property in England or Scotland, your landlord should provide you with a copy of the EICR - an inspection of the electrics needs to be carried out every five years. If any hazards have been identified in the property, these need to be fixed within 28 days with confirmation provided to the tenant and local authority.
If you are buying a property and the vendor says that an inspection has been carried out recently, they should also be able to provide you with a copy of the report.
Private landlords in Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs) are responsible for ensuring that the electrics in communal areas are safe - this can be demonstrated by using Greenleafe Electrical Services Ltd to carry out an inspection of the electrics, after which we will issue the Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR). We recommend that these checks are carried out on a five yearly basis.
Supplying an item that way is very poor practice and presents a serious electrical safety risk - the cable could be damaged where it passes through the window and garage door and water could run down the cable into the socket or appliance, depending on how the cable enters the garage. Over a longer period the cable may also be affected by sunlight causing the outer insulation to deteriorate. The item should be supplied via a socket that is nearer to the item - eg within 2 metres.
The lack of an earth wire is dangerous and something that would be picked up in the inspection of the electrical installation that private landlords in England and Scotland are legally obliged to have carried out on a five yearly basis.
When an electrical inspection is carried out, the electrician will issue an Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR). This will either confirm that the installation is safe or highlight any hazards that need to be fixed. These should be repaired within 28 days and your landlord should give you a copy of the report. If the landlord refuses to fix the problem, then you should speak to your local authority. However, this particular issue may be a problem that is the responsibility of the network operator rather than your landlord as they have an obligation to maintain the earth where provided.
We always recommend using a registered electrician for electrical work in the home. This gives you the peace of mind that they work to the British safety Standard BS7671, that their work is regularly assessed and that they are insured. It is also a legal requirement for certain types of electrical work.
If you want to check whether the electrician you are using is registered, you can do so on the Electrical Competent Person website or by checking on the scheme operators' websites in Scotland. If you cannot find the details and the electrician is claiming to be registered with a particular scheme, you should report them to the scheme operator in question so that they can take action. If your electrician is not registered, it is also worth contacting Trading Standards to register your complaint about their work.
There's no legal requirement to have portable appliance tests (PAT) carried out on any electrical products supplied with a tenancy - whether you are in a House in Multiple Occupation (HMO) or other rented property. However, landlords of HMOs should test the products regularly, at least when the electrical installation is tested.
You do not need to provide an Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR) in order to sell a property, although it will give your buyer peace of mind that the property they are buying is electrically safe.
If you have had any electrical work carried out that is notifiable under Part P of the Building Regulations (all installation work and anything in a bathroom), then this must either be carried out by a registered electrician, who will issue you with a certificate on completion of the work, or reported to the Local Authority Building Control. Without this certification, you may find it difficult to sell the property.
Private landlords in England and Scotland are required to carry out five-yearly checks on the electrical installations in their rental properties. This will also be a legal requirement in Wales from July 2022.
We recommend the same for any landlords in Wales and Northern Ireland as these checks protect your tenants and properties from electrical accidents.
When an inspection is carried out on the installation, the electrician will issue an Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR), which will highlight any electrical hazards that need to be addressed. The classification codes on the report are:
C1 - Danger present, risk of injury (immediate remedial action required)
C2 - Potentially dangerous (urgent remedial action required)
C3 - Improvement recommended
FI - Further investigation required without delay
If Codes C1 or C2 are recorded on the form, remedial action must be taken within 28 days. If the inspector identifies that further investigation is required, this must also be undertaken.
However, you do NOT need to take immediate action for a C3 recommendation. However, following the recommendation(s) would improve the electrical safety of your property.
