Certificates

EICR Explained: What Landlords Must Do

Electrical safety · 5 min read

The EICR — Electrical Installation Condition Report — is one of the certificates that trips up otherwise careful landlords, because it's less familiar than the annual gas check and comes round less often. Miss it, though, and you're looking at one of the larger fines in the compliance rulebook. Here's what it is and exactly what you need to do.

What is an EICR?

An EICR is a formal inspection of the fixed electrical installation in a property — the wiring, sockets, consumer unit (fuse board), light fittings and so on. A qualified electrician tests it all and reports on its condition, flagging anything unsafe or not up to standard. It is not the same as a PAT test, which covers plug-in appliances.

How often do landlords need one?

For residential tenancies in England, the rules require the electrical installation to be inspected and tested at least every 5 years, and a report provided. Some reports recommend a shorter interval — if the electrician specifies a re-test sooner than 5 years, that date becomes your deadline. You must give a copy of the report to your tenants, and to the local authority if they ask for it.

What does "satisfactory" mean?

An EICR results in codes against any issues found:

C1 — danger present, risk of injury. Immediate action required.
C2 — potentially dangerous. Urgent remedial work needed.
C3 — improvement recommended (not a failure on its own).
FI — further investigation required.

A report is unsatisfactory if it contains any C1, C2 or FI codes. If it does, you must have the remedial work done — generally within 28 days (or sooner if the report says so) — and get written confirmation the installation is now safe. A report with only C3 items is satisfactory, though addressing them is sensible.

The trap: a "satisfactory" EICR from five years ago is worthless the day it expires. Because the gap is so long, it's the certificate landlords most often forget — right up until a tenant, agent or council asks for the current one.

What are the penalties?

Local authorities can serve a remedial notice and, for non-compliance, impose a financial penalty of up to £30,000. They can also arrange for the work to be done themselves and recover the cost. On top of the fine, an out-of-date or missing EICR can undermine your position in a possession claim and complicate insurance. It's also one of the core documents a council expects when it asks for your compliance records — and a current EICR is set to be part of what you'll need to register each property on the coming PRS database.

What should landlords do?

Use a qualified, competent electrician — one properly registered and experienced in periodic inspection and testing.
Book the re-test before it expires, not after. Good electricians get booked up; leave yourself a buffer.
Act on C1/C2/FI codes promptly and keep the written confirmation the work is done.
Give tenants a copy of the report, and keep the document and its expiry date somewhere you can produce instantly.
Set a reminder well ahead of the 5-year mark — the long interval is exactly why this one slips.

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General guidance for UK landlords, not legal advice. Electrical safety requirements apply in England under the relevant regulations; exact duties, timescales and penalties are set by government and can change — always verify current requirements at GOV.UK and use a qualified electrician.