By law Landlords and letting agents have a duty of care towards their tenants with legal obligations that ensure the properties’ electrical system and appliances are safe.
Making sure your property is safe protects your tenants from electrical accidents and fire, validates your insurance and protects you the landlord from fines.
Legally, it’s essential to make sure that
- Your properties electrical system (fuse board, wiring, sockets etc.) is always safe at the start and throughout the tenancy
- All appliances (kettles, ovens etc.) supplied with the tenancy are safe to use with CE marking
- Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR) is undertaken by a certified electrician every five years for houses in multiple occupations
- Every floor of the property has a smoke alarm
- Every room where a solid fuel-burning appliance is present has a carbon monoxide alarm
What’s an EICR?
An Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR) covers any part of the electrical system served from wiring connected to the electric meter.
A ‘House In Multiple Occupation’ is ‘a property where several different households are living and sharing facilities (kitchen, bathroom etc.) so the electrical certificate every five years rule only really applies to Houses In Multiple Occupation.
As a landlord who rents out single occupation properties you don’t by law have to have an EICR inspection carried out every five years, but it’s still a legal requirement that the electrical system and appliances of your property are safe to use at the start and period of the tenancy.
Better to be safe than sorry, so it’s highly encouraged that an Electrical Inspection is carried out and a certificate is issued every five years whether your property is single or multiple occupations. Inspections ensure your tenants are safe and your property is legal.
While Electrical Installation Condition Reports cover all wiring connected to the electric meter EICR’s do not include portable electric appliances such as toasters and kettles. You can make sure all portable appliances are safe in your property with PAT testing.
What is PAT Testing?
Portable Appliance Testing (PAT) is where a qualified electrician inspects and tests electrical appliances and determines whether it’s safe to use, electrical equipment that doesn’t pass the PAT test can be repaired or replaced.
PAT testing is not required by law but all electrical appliances in rental properties must be safe to use by law, and it’s your responsibility as a landlord to ensure all electrical appliances are safe for your tenants. Annual PAT testing is recommended for all rental properties to protect your tenants from an electrical accident and to protect landlords from legal action should an electrical accident occur.
Electrical safety is essential and inexpensive here is what every landlord should do to make sure their tenants are safe and to cover themselves legally
Landlords Electrical Safety Checklist
- Hire a qualified electrician to carry out an Electrical Installation Condition Report and issue a certificate every five years
- Hire a qualified electrician to undertake Portable Appliance Testing every year
- Make sure you have landlords insurance
- Make sure your property has RCD protection (RCD consumer units should comply with BS EN 61439-)
- Make sure a smoke alarm is fitted on every floor of the property
- Make sure every room with a solid fuel burning appliance is fitted with a carbon monoxide alarm
Our fully qualified and certified electricians regularly carry out Electrical Installation Condition Reports and Portable Appliance Testing. Please contact us if you would like to book an Electrican to inspect your property and electrical appliances.