EICR – Rogue electrician scam?

Reply to the comment left by michaelwgroves at 12/12/2020 - 08:20
Spot on! I found everything that you say to be completely correct. A lot of nonsense spoken elsewhere. Particularly from vested interests.

EICR on the flat has two C2s and is therefore 'Unsatisfactory'. I am looking for evidence one way or t'other on legislation.gov on whether I can start a new tenancy and have the remedial done within 28 days.

On a non-gov site (electrical contractor?) I have found a statement that a satisfactory EICR must be produced at the start of he tenancy, implying my unsatis. one is not sufficient, but I would prefer to see this requirement on a .gov site. Can anyone point me to it or answer the question?

It would be nice to have the tenancy started before xmas, and the prospective tenant is happy to have the work done any time.

Also I have found this:-

" only the original electrician can update the EICR report, so you may need to pay a supplement for them to return and re-test the non-conformances, in order to obtain your ‘Satisfactory’ report."

I thought I could have someone else do the remedials and issue a certain certificate to be attached to the original?

Reply to the comment left by Gunga Din at 16/12/2020 - 20:43
I think you may get some opinion as an answer along with some fact. I certainly am not sure. I say to my spark, fix it if while you're there if it's a low cost repair. Mostly it's cheaper than another visit and retest. If it's big, he calls me & we work out the best course of action. Not sure if they would know, but try NICEIC and NRLA. You can't be the 1st landlord to ask these questions & I'm confident that between them they could at least steer you in the right direction. It's worth the NRLA membership fee for the helpline. Well it has been for me.

Reply to the comment left by Gunga Din at 16/12/2020 - 20:43
RE: "I thought I could have someone else do the remedials and issue a certain certificate to be attached to the original?"
As previously posted, I suggest that you get a definitive statement from enquiries@electricalsafetyfirst.org.uk.
My agent backed down on a similar issue due to the Electricalsafetyfirst response that I sent to them.
Electricalsafetyfirst seem to be completely independent.

RE: "I thought I could have someone else do the remedials and issue a certain certificate to be attached to the original?"
See my previous post suggesting getting a definitive statement from enquiries@electricalsafetyfirst.org.uk.
My agent backed down on a similar issue due to the Electricalsafetyfirst response that I sent to them.
Electricalsafetyfirst seem to be completely independent.

Reply to the comment left by Gunga Din at 16/12/2020 - 20:43
The latest How to rent guide advises;
“ The landlord should also provide you with:
A record of any electrical inspections.
Under the Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020, landlords have to get their property electrics checked at least every five years by a properly qualified person. This applies to new tenancies from 1 July 2020 and existing tenancies from 1 April 2021. The electrics must be safe and your landlord must give you proof of this.”

To me this is unambiguous, you “MUST” prove the electrics are safe, as you have an unsatisfactory EICR your electrics are NOT safe. Therefore you can not comply until you make the electrics safe. This has the potential to become next next gas certificate conundrum. I think it would be very foolhardy to be create a new tenancy in full knowledge the electrics are not safe and therefore deliberately Ignoring this requirement.

As to your second question, no one, not even the original contractor should be editing an EICR.
If you get an unsatisfactory report, any skilled electrician can rectify the fault. They would then simply give you a further certificate to advise the fault had been rectified. Therefore, you can now prove your electrics are safe as required.

A couple of points of interest, an EICR is not the only way to do comply, but it is the most common. An Electrical Installation Certificate (EIC) does the same job. If you get an unsatisfactory EICR, it’s likely you’ll get an EIC when the faults are rectified, this can replace the EICR. If it’s only minor work, you’ll get a Minor EIC. You’ll need to put this with the EICR.

Another point of interest, the 5 year test is the maximum period. It can be much shorter. This is no longer a fixed period. The electrician must complete a risk assessment, depending on what he finds will dictate the period he recommends. It could be as little as a year if there is evidence of DIY electrics and long outstanding issues.

Thanks for the input. As suspected I must start a tenancy with a Satisfactory EICR, and have managed to arrange the remedial work and compliance cert. issue this weekend.