New EICR to cover any changes made by outgoing tenant?

Change of occupancy could well mean a new home owner. We know when a property is purchased, a surveyor's report is required by the mortgage lender, who may also ask for a report on electrical installation condition. Perhaps a better word would have been change of ownership

Sorry I can only go by the 17th Edition IET book as I am no longer actively involved in wiring work, so I did not need to get the 18th edition. So under the Notes for the person producing the report, it says: 3. "The reason for producing a report, such as change of occupancy or landlord's periodic maintenance, should be identified in Section B "

And if they wanted to be more precise, they could have used the word "Change of tenancy"

So it is down to how one interprets "change of occupancy" (in my view)

Further more let us not assume automatically that the words "Change of occupancy" mean change of tenants,
I googled for the definition so here is the quote below
"Change of Occupancy means a change in the use or occupancy of any building or structure that would place the building or structure in a different division of the same group of occupancies or in a different group of occupancies; or a change in the purpose or level of activity within a building or structure that involves ...
Change of Occupancy definition - Law Insider"

Again what I can make from the above is the words "Change in the use" so a rented property does not change its use from one tenant leaving to a new one coming in, its purpose has not changed, it is still a rental accommodation. So like I said it could mean many things.

It can also mean changes in the building structure, so any additions or alterations would require a new EICR report if a landlord alters a property. So under these circumstances a landlord may be obliged to obtain a fresh report but not upon change of tenants, as the prime objective of a property has not changed. I.e. it may have been 3 bedroom rental property and now it has been converted to 4 bedrooms for the purpose which remains unchanged that is it is still a rental property, so a new EICR would be required as additional wiring has been carried out.

I think change of occupancy is the correct wording for 18th edition as it is written for both residential and commercial, so it needs to be fairly genetic.
If a property/wiring was extended, you’d need an EIC, not an EICR.
I did post the question, everyone seemed to say the same thing, I posted the NAPIT interpretation and the thread stopped. I can only assume that means everyone was in agreement.
Also, if you accept the NAPIT interpretation, HMO’s are no longer an anomaly.

Reply to the comment left by Seething Landlord at 08/05/2021 - 13:38
I said in a previous post that if the legislators had intended to require a new inspection on change of occupancy they could have tried to define what that means and done so.

The definition Mike has quoted is I think based on Canadian law but at best the term is vague and open to various interpretation which is why if it had been intended to require a new EICR on change of occupancy the Regulations should have said so and included a precise definition of the term.

Reply to the comment left by Seething Landlord at 13/05/2021 - 08:41I believe that under English planning law the corresponding term would be 'change of use'.

Perhaps somebody could ask the IET to define the term which they have chosen to include in the 18th edition.

If "change of occupancy" is really meant to be a change in tenancy, or even changes in the terms of an existing tenancy, or a tenant whose tenancy term has come to an end and he/she decides to renew a new term, will this also come under Change of occupancy ?

Now suppose if one tenant moves out, terminating his tenancy, and new tenancy commences with a new tenant, what difference would that make to the safety and condition of a house electrics, usually a landlord would go over everything making sure all lights work, hot and cold water works, cooker and other appliances work, get any electrical portable items PAT tested (required each year) landlord would check many other things for correct functioning, no leaky taps, and he would spend a fair time getting the premises ready for his new tenant, in doing so he may go over all sockets to use his vacuum cleaner to vacuum carpets, and other cleaning tasks, check for any burnt or overheating marks on all sockets, he may well be advised to purchase a plug in testers to check each socket is fully functional and correctly polarised, and a tester can have a test button to check RCD safely trips, this would not require a landlord to ask for a new report when the old one is still valid for some time. All he needs to do is conduct a simple basic testing that we should all be able to carry out using an affordable plug in test device. If a test is successful then a landlord does not need a new EICR or to call an expert to look into a problem and get it sorted out by a qualified Electrician and get a fresh EICR report.

You do not have to be a qualified electrician or a mechanic to check your engine oil, battery voltage as long as you own a tester, if you see anything strange with your car, you take it to a garage, same way if something you notice is not right, you would call an expert, unless you possess the knowledge in that field you would be able to sort things out for yourself.

Reply to the comment left by Mike at 13/05/2021 - 12:19
The next Govt regulations will require a Locksmith to certify that the keys operate the doors effectively ( But only in Private rented properties, of course ! )

Reply to the comment left by Chris @ Possession Friend at 13/05/2021 - 12:22
Ha ha Chris,

We thinking alike. I'm gonna' put me bank card number on me forehead & give the Govt & tenants me card to do as the please.

And let 'em have me pension too, cause I'll never be able to get to enjoy it cause woe betide anyone that dare to get old & wishes to slow down, Oh no Boyo, u going on training courses at age 70, your tenants are never gonna' be able to move cause Landlords will only be taking those who earn over 100k & u Boyo are going prison soon on some new trumped up reg/rule/charge we'll bring in & u wun't know cause u won't be able to keep up with the constantly changing Rule book to stop tenants EVER BEING EVICTED. But what the Govt & Councils fail to realise on that point is, that Ok, never evicted, but that also means new tenants coming in can't get anywhere.

Reply to the comment left by Chris @ Possession Friend at 13/05/2021 - 12:22Absolutely Chris, of course safety of anyone is just as important not just for tenants but for home owners, visitors, workers, etc, all buildings should be as safe as it can be made without making it into a fortress.
So if a tenant had modified electrics, did some DIY work not to standards, or laid dangerous wiring or replaced MCBs with higher ratings, of course the landlord would not know, but while that same tenant is living there and an incident happens, who would be blamed when tenant denies carrying out any work on the electrics, will it be the landlord or the electrician who issued a report? so what I am trying to say here is regardless of a tenant still living if he carried out any work without the knowledge of a landlord and after EICR was issued, there is no way of knowing the premises are in a dangerous state , and so what happens if a landlord gets a new EICR for a new tenant and the new tenant withing months of moving in starts to alter wiring and carry out DIY work on it,
So you see the point I am making is that it is useless or pointless in doing a fresh EICR for change of occupancy (On the change of a tenancy) It still does not mean the electrics are safe when a new tenant starts to mess about with electrics, if something happens, it would extremely difficult to prove who carried out dangerous work, and how would a landlord stand on a trial where a disgruntled tenant deliberately makes the wiring dangerous, removes earthing, or causes conditions that are likely to cause fire, risk of shock, etc, so an EICR report is not an ultimate proof that wiring is safe.