Can I complete replacement electrical work as a landlord?

Unless you are a qualified electrician, the answer has to be no, get a qualified electrician. It's one thing changing light bulbs, but another to do any wiring, even if you do feel competent and able to do it. If things go wrong, then you run the risk of being prosecuted.

No, You need space scientist from NASA to certify your electrical safety. But I don't trust them either as the space shuttle Challenger exploded in 1986, trust your own ability as you are competent in my view, often better than some qualified electricians, if this site permitted sticking pictures I would show you a picture of a qualified Electrician how notorious his workmanship was when he swapped an old CU with a new one and charged me £500 for such a crap workmanship, If you know your electrics and have worked on it, why not and who is going to check your finger prints who did any work on your electrics? Just wear insulating gloves! I do all my own electrical work, to much better standard than many who just want get it done mentality, not caring about aesthetics apart from obviously safety which is of prime concern not just for the tenants but for our lives that matter too. Oh yes I have worked in Electrical related industry for practically all my life for commercial employers, I know my stuff more than many qualified registered electricians. That is what earned my money to buy houses to rent!

Have you recorded the results of tests following any of your modifications in the prescribed manner? If not, ask yourself if you’re competent to not only carry out the work, but to leave it safe. How would you establish that should, for example, one of your terminals loosen and cause a fire involving injury or worse. ? It’s about establishing competence and keeping test records in the event.

"Can a landlord", can anyone?

https://www.warwickdc.gov.uk/info/20375/building_regulations/1140/renovating_your_home/9

"All NEW electrical work must comply with Part P of the Building Regulations which restricts DIY electrical work on grounds of safety. However, you are still allowed to carry out some work yourself without notifying Building Control. Minor repairs and maintenance are permitted, as well as ‘like for like’ replacements, such as changing existing sockets, switches and ceiling pendants or even replacing damaged cables. As long as the job isn’t within a ‘special location’ such as a bathroom or outdoors, you’re also allowed to install additional new light fittings, switches, sockets and even add a single fused spur to an existing circuit (a ‘spur’ is a new cable and socket run as a branch from an existing socket on the ring main)."

I don't know of any further restrictions on landlordes but am prepared to beproved wrong.

Reply to the comment left by Mike at 12/03/2021 - 11:47
Exactly the same story here. You can go on ad-infinitum employing yet more licensed bureaucrats and chasing them through whatever process you are supposed to be enslaved to a "fine upstanding citizen" or you can take some personal responsibility for ensuring the safety of yourself and your tenants rather than have somebody else to blame. The compromise is to get a member of the club to check your completed work. Or waste time and money joining it personally.
I too have had to rip out the work done by "approved" people and I am sick of it.
Social constructs will destroy us or even worse, turn us into americans. (Lower case is not a typo).

Yes you can for 'non-notifiable work' under Building Regs, but you and your work may or may not be covered by any insurance.
Minor Works are covered under Building Regulations. See https://www.planningportal.co.uk/info/200130/common_projects/16/electrics/5

Reply to the comment left by Mike at 12/03/2021 - 11:47
Yes you can do electrical work as long as it is tested by a Registered electrician and either a Part P or EICR is provided.
I do my own electrics and get it tested afterwards. The person I use to certify knows I do a quality high standard job, He is very thorough in his inspection and always happy with the quality.
I am not a qualified electrician but ran a data cabling company for over 20 years and have installed every type of cable, from basic data cabling, fibre, CCTV up to 132K electrical cables.
I ensure segregation etc and trunking/conduit is used and tend to have each room served by an MCB, so my own 4 bed house has a 16 way CU, far exceeding the regulations.

As a long time member of the 'boys club' that people seem to love to hate, as well as being a landlord - also hated of course- of 28 years with 42 properties- I only give this info to qualify my answers so as to knock out a lot of the rubbish wriiten on here.

1) Ignore the people that say you cant do it- IN LAW YOU CAN- and its hardly a big complex job is it? It would count as a 'Minor Electrical Installation Works' job and you dont need to be registered or even qualified. It is non notifiable to building control.

2) Any minor works installation needs to be BS7671 compliant (changing a single to a double shouldn't raise any problems here).

3) The rub- the circuit needs to be inspected and tested to ensure BS7671 compliance. A bit like an eicr but just for the altered circuit. So unless you happen to have a bit of our relevant testing equipment kicking around (£800-£1000 worth for anything decent) and the said equipment has its annual calibration certificate valid, along with the knowledge and experience of performing the testing it leaves you a bit stuck.

Ridiculous situation? 100% agree but this is the IET and BSI that make the rules not the electricians in the 'boys club'- we hate the rule makers even more than Joe public does as we're the ones that suffer Joe publics cr*p for having to follow the regs.

Now- that is the legal situation. Most people who have a modicum of DIY skills would just do that job and not worry about it. I am not of course advising you to do that, whatever you do is up to you.

Dont forget future liability should any incident occur (unlikely) but someone is always held accountable in todays society. At least in the 'boys club' we are insured for millions.

Out of interest if you google up IET (institute of engineering technology) and look up their 'model forms' on there you will find the legal minor works form. Anyone is allowed to view, print and use it. It is a one page test document and has a 2nd guidance page explaining its purpose and the conditions.

Forget the armchair experts (a lot of who seem to know it all and know 'nowt'), and forget the haters- as landlords a wrongly persecuted group I take exception with other landlords who want to have a go at me and mine (another newly unfairly persecuted group- but thats some people for ya eh!!)

And yes their are rogue sparks as there are definitely rogue landlords- so does that mean we all rogue landlords??

Correct advice given to you now as well as a minor moan!

Hope that helps.

I meant to add on that last post you can get a 'skilled' person to test and certify it- its called 3rd party certification and some of is hold that ticket. Trouble is i dont do it, a lot of others wont and those that will may overcharge you.

One thing to bare in mind, you may do the best job ever but your lovely tenant decides to alter something to what you did and electrocutes himself because he forgot to turn off the power first. His lovely partner then tells the authorities that only days earlier you came round and did some work on that socket. Your word against his/hers but you did actually do something albeit good and can't deny that. Had it have been tested by a qualified electrician you would have been covered but I bet your liability insurance won't cover you. I had A Kitchen, Bedroom and Bathroom business for 25 years and we did all our own electrics, complete ring mains etc. and had it inspected by the local council who then were only allowed to charge a max. of £90.00 for domestics, whereas an electrician would have charged about £200.00. There was always a joke that the tester would say "I can see your not qualified electricians because the work is to good", but we always did it correctly to the letter and never had a problem. We certainly did see some very dangerous DIY jobs when ripping out old kitchens. There are many jobs you are allowed to do in your own home but the small print says "by a competent person". Is it worth the risk just save a few bob???