Able Electricians Specialists EICR Testing Birmingham Coventry

An EICR – or Electrical Installation Condition Report – is an official document produced following a full inspection of the electrical systems and installations in your home or workplace. 

As part of the periodic inspection process, qualified electricians will check whether your electrics are well-maintained and, more importantly, safe. Once your premises have passed all the checks and any urgent remedial work has been carried out, you will be presented with a certificate of safety.

An Electrical Installation Condition Report – or EICR – is an in-depth inspection of the electrical systems at your home, place of work or public premises. 

Periodic testing and inspection should only be carried out by electrically competent, qualified electricians. EICR Testing engineers are further trained to City & Guilds 2395 Inspection and Testing level. 

Electrical Installation Condition Reports are for any buildings or premises which have electrical systems. They are used by business owners, homeowners, landlords and authorities which manage a variety of public buildings, such as schools, churches and leisure centres etc.  

There are many reasons why a business or property owner might request an EICR and there are many benefits to having one, but what it often boils down to is documented proof that the on-site electrics are safe.

How often an EICR is needed depends on the size of the installation and the purpose it is used for. Large factories housing industrial plant, for example, will need to be inspected more frequently than a domestic property.

As a guide, an Electrical Installation Condition Report should be carried out at the minimum of:

• Domestic installations – every 10 years or at a change of occupancy
• Commercial installations – every 5 years or at change of occupancy
• Industrial installations – every 3 years
• Landlord-owned residential accommodation – every 5 years or at change of occupancy
• Offices, shops and laboratories – every 5 years

Although an Electrical Installation Condition Report – or EICR – is not a legal requirement in itself, many property owners are bound by legal obligations to their staff, customers or tenants which can be met by an EICR inspection. Relevant legislation could include the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, The Electricity at Work Regulations 1989 or The Landlords and Tenants Act (1985).

The cost of an EICR varies from premise to premise. For example, there is much more work involved in testing a large plant facility in comparison with a residential property. Tests can take anything from a few hours to several weeks, depending on the size and nature of the operation.

Also, no two businesses are the same, which means the testing procedure differs each time an Electrical Installation Condition Report is carried out.