Guide
C1, C2, C3 and FI: reading an EICR
One letter and one digit against each observation decides whether a report is satisfactory, what has to be fixed and by when. C3 looks like a failure and is not one.
The four codes
C1 means danger present. Something is live and reachable now, and the inspector makes it safe before leaving rather than writing it down and going. A C1 on a report should always be accompanied by a note saying what was done about it on the day.
C2 means potentially dangerous. Nothing is live and reachable today, and a foreseeable fault or a single further failure would make it so. Missing earthing to a lighting circuit is the classic example. C3 means improvement recommended: the installation is safe and does not meet the current standard, which is true of almost every installation older than the standard. FI means further investigation is required, usually because something could not be reached or tested.
What makes a report unsatisfactory
Any C1, any C2, or any FI. That is the whole rule. A report covered in C3 observations and nothing else is satisfactory, and it is the normal outcome for a sound installation that was wired to an earlier edition of the standard.
This matters because a report with eleven observations is not worse than one with two until you have read the codes. Landlords in particular are sometimes quoted for remedial work covering every observation on the report, when only the C1, C2 and FI items are what the regulations require to be addressed.
What has to happen next
In a rented property, remedial work on the C1, C2 and FI items has to be completed within 28 days of the report, or sooner if the report specifies, and written confirmation goes to the tenant and to the council if they have asked for it.
In an owner occupied house nobody can compel anything. The report is still the list a surveyor will read during a sale, and C3 items are worth doing when a room is being decorated or a floor is up for another reason, which is almost always the cheapest moment.
The observations that come up most
No residual current protection on socket circuits. A lighting circuit with no earth conductor, which is standard in houses wired before the late sixties and rules out metal fittings. Main protective bonding missing or undersized at the gas and water entry points. A plastic consumer unit under a wooden staircase.
None of those means an installation is dangerous today. All of them are worth understanding before agreeing to a quote, and an inspector who will spend ten minutes walking through the report is worth more than one who emails a PDF.
Common questions
Does a C3 have to be fixed?
No, in any property. A C3 is a recommendation and does not affect the verdict. It is a good list to work through opportunistically.
Can the same electrician inspect and then do the remedials?
Yes, and it is common and convenient. What should not happen is being told their quote is the only route to a satisfactory report.
How long does an unsatisfactory report stay unsatisfactory?
Until the C1, C2 and FI items are addressed and confirmed in writing. The original report is not reissued; the confirmation sits alongside it.