Do I Need an EICR?

Wondering if you need an EICR carried out on your Loughton home or rental property? 

Well, thankfully you’ve landed in the right place. Here at Tack Electrical Solutions, we perform all forms of electrical testing including the all important EICR. Consider your own personal guide to making sure your home, or rental property is compliant, electrically safe and how an EICR plays a part in all of this.  

What Is An EICR & Why Are They Important?

An EICR (Electrical Installation Condition Report) is like an MOT for your home’s electrical system. It’s a thorough inspection by a qualified electrician that checks everything from wiring to your sockets. It also has a good look at your fuse board, think of this as the engine! The EICR will flag up anything out of the ordinary, this could be a significant fault or something less so. Any faults detected will be given a code outlining a specific level of urgency allowing you to prioritise remedial work effectively. Here’s a more detailed look into each code and what they mean:

• C1 – Danger present, risk of injury. The fault must be made safe straight away.
• C2 – Potentially dangerous. Requires remedial work as soon as possible.
• FI – Further investigation required. An FI code will result in a failure until further testing has been carried out.  
• C3 - Improvement recommended. A strong suggestion but not a priority, especially if a C1 or C2 code is also present.  

Who Needs An EICR?

Here’s the legal stuff:

• UK Landlords: You must have an EICR at least every five years - part of Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector Regulations 2020. You also need to supply tenants with a copy within 28 days and share it with the local council within 7 days if asked.
• UK Homeowners: It’s not legally required - but highly recommended every 10 years (or sooner, depending on age or condition of your wiring). Having an EICR provides you with peace of mind, something that is essentially priceless.  

Thinking Of Selling?

Before you pop your Loughton home on the market, it’s a smart idea to have a valid EICR. A home that’s deemed electrically safe by a fully qualified professional is much more attractive to potential buyers which in turn is likely to gain you that all important asking price or higher.

I’m going to turn the table here also - if you’re a buyer thinking of putting in an offer, I’d hold off until an EICR is carried out. If the property is deemed unsafe, and requires a significant level of electrical work, a low ball offer might just be accepted, especially if it’s not been declared.  

EICRs In Loughton

Need an EICR carried out on your Loughton property? Here at Tack Electrical Solutions we’ve seen some shockers before (pun very much intended!) - just take a look at our facebook page! That’s exactly why an EICR is so important - it alerts us to potentially dangerous faults in our electrical systems, even if everything seems to be ‘fine’. For more information on all things EICR - whether you’re a homeowner or landlord, we can help. Tack Electrical Solutions, Loughton’s top choice for EICR’s and remedial work.