What is an EICR - Electrical Inspection Condition Report. .(Electrical Safety First https://www.electricalsafetyfirst.org.uk/find-an-electrician/periodic-inspection-explained/guide-to-condition-reports/)

You cannot see electricity. Cables are usually hidden inside our walls, and consumer units are often hidden in cupboards, so it is not surprising that we forget to check the condition of our electrical installation for damage or wear and tear.

Faulty and old wiring is one of the main causes or electrical fires in the home. You can reduce the risk of a fire by checking the condition of your cables, switches, sockets and other accessories regularly. Clear signs that can help you tell the age of equipment in the electrical installation in your home include:

Fixed cables coated in black rubber (stopped being used in the 1960s).

Fixed cables coated in lead or fabric (used before the 1960s).

A fuse box with a wooden back, cast iron switches, or a mixture of fuse boxes (used before the 1960s).

Older round pin sockets (or light switches), braided flex hanging from ceiling roses, brown (or black) switches, or sockets mounted in or no skirting boards (used before the 1960s).

Light switches on the walls or in bathrooms (used before the 1960s).

However old your electrical installation is, it may get damaged and will suffer from wear and tear. So you should get an electrician to check its condition at least every 10 years or when you move into a new property.

The five main aims of a condition report are:

• 1.Record the results of the inspection and testing to make sure the electrical installation is safe to be used until the next inspection (following any work needed to make it safe)
• 2.Find any damage and wear and tear that might affect safety, and report it
• 3.Find any parts of the electrical installation that do not meet the IET Wiring Regulations
• 4.Help find anything that may cause electric shocks and high temperatures
• 5.Provide and important record of the installation at the time of the inspection, and for inspection testing in the future.

In general, there are two types of domestic electrical installation condition report:

Visual condition report - this does not include testing and is only suitable if the installation has been testing recently.

Periodic inspection reports - this is what we would normally recommend, as it tests the installation and would find any hidden damage.

Who should produce your condition report?

You should find a registered electrician to carry out your periodic inspection.

(above information taken from Electrical Safety First https://www.electricalsafetyfirst.org.uk/find-an-electrician/periodic-inspection-explained/guide-to-condition-reports/)

If you are a landlord or business owner then you should have EICR carried out. The length of time between differs depending on the use of the building or the business that is operating from it. As the owner of business or property you are responsible for the safety of your tenants or customers. One of our customers came to us after years of DIY and un registered electricians carrying out work at his rental property the tenant reported the electrics as unsafe to the council and was ordered to do something about them. We first set about carrying out the EICR to establish where the faults where and then discussed with the customer a plan to rectify the faults and make the property safe for the tenants. This customer has several rental properties and this incident prompted him to have his other properties checked to put his mind and tenants at easy knowing that the electricity in the house was safe.

We were at a business property carrying out pat testing our engineer plugged the pat testing machine in to a socket in the property and it came up with a warning on the screen to say that there was a problem with the power supply to the socket (this had nothing to do with the pat testing as sockets aren't tested just portable appliances) we recommended a full electrical check of the property which showed up several faults that the public and staff had access to.

Protect your staff and customers get it checked out, you mot and service your vehicles so why not your electricity?