inspection
EICR and electrical installation condition reports
An electrical installation condition report on a three bedroom house costs £150 to £300 and takes two to four hours. It is an inspection, not a repair: what it produces is a coded list of what is wrong and a verdict of satisfactory or unsatisfactory on the installation as a whole.
What this covers
What it costs. A domestic EICR runs £150 to £300 depending on the number of circuits, and a one bedroom flat sits at the bottom of that range. Full cost breakdown.
What the job covers
- Periodic inspection and testing of a whole installation
- Coding C1, C2, C3 and FI observations
- Remedial work to turn an unsatisfactory report satisfactory
- Reports for a sale, a purchase or an insurer
- Commercial reports with agreed circuit sampling
What is involved
The inspection covers the fixed wiring: the consumer unit, every circuit leaving it, the earthing and bonding arrangements, and a sample of accessories on each circuit. Some of it is visual and some of it is instrument testing, which means circuits come off one at a time and the power goes down. Anyone quoting an hour for a whole house is either sampling very lightly or not testing at all, and the report will say which because the schedule of test results has a column for every circuit.
Findings are coded, and the codes are the part worth understanding. C1 means danger present: something is live and reachable, and the inspector makes it safe before leaving. C2 means potentially dangerous, which covers most real world findings such as missing earthing to a lighting circuit. C3 means improvement recommended and is not a failure. FI means further investigation is required. A report goes unsatisfactory on any C1, C2 or FI, and C3 observations on their own leave it satisfactory.
Remedial work is a separate job and can be done by anyone competent, not only by whoever inspected. Asking the inspecting electrician to quote is normal and convenient; being told the quote is the only way to obtain a satisfactory report is not. Once remedials are complete the inspector issues confirmation that the C1 and C2 items have been addressed, and that confirmation plus the original report is what a council, a lender or a letting agent asks to see.
Choosing someone for the job
Ask how long the inspection is booked for and how many circuits will be tested rather than sampled. Ask whether the price includes the remedial quote and whether that quote is itemised by code. Ask for the inspector's scheme registration number and check it. Agree before the visit what happens if a C1 is found, because that is the one finding that changes the shape of the day.
Common questions
How long is an EICR valid for?
Five years at most for a domestic installation, and less where the report itself recommends an earlier date. A change of occupancy, a significant alteration or evidence of damage all justify an earlier inspection.
Will the power be off during the inspection?
Yes, circuit by circuit, for most of the visit. Expect the whole installation to go down at least once. Work from home, freezers and medical equipment are worth mentioning when booking rather than on the day.