What Is an EICR?

An inspection of a building's common parts does not automatically cover electrical installations within individual units. Likewise, an appliance testing record does not replace an assessment of the fixed wiring supplying those appliances.

Give the inspector the previous report, installation certificates, circuit information and records of alterations or electrical faults. Explain how the premises operate and identify equipment that cannot lose power without a controlled shutdown.

Agree these practical details:

1. Which buildings, boards, circuits and occupied areas are included.
2. Who controls access and authorises interruptions to supplies.
3. How occupiers receive notice and arrange access to locked rooms.
4. How urgent findings reach the person authorised to act.
5. How limitations and work left outstanding will be documented.

An accurate scope makes quotations easier to compare. A low price for a limited inspection is a different proposition from a wider assessment requiring several visits and coordinated shutdowns.

Read the outcome alongside the observations and limitations. Ask the inspector to explain the urgency of each finding and the recommended response. Keep immediate safety actions separate from planned improvements so that an important defect does not disappear into a general refurbishment list.

Assign an owner to each action and retain the evidence of completed remedial work with the original report. Record unresolved access restrictions and arrange the further inspection needed to close them. A report filed without its outstanding actions being managed leaves the property manager with an incomplete picture.

Use the recommended next inspection date as a planning input, alongside changes to the premises and the requirements applying to the property. Damage, alterations or a change in use need attention when they occur.

No. An EICR assesses an existing installation. Documentation issued for new electrical work records that work and its verification. Keep both, because alterations and their records help the next inspector understand the installation.

Inspection and remedial work are separate scopes. Agree how defects will be reported, authorised and resolved. Ask for the appropriate completion records for repairs, rather than assuming the inspection fee includes every corrective action.

Plan for interruptions where the inspection and testing require them. Agree the shutdown arrangements beforehand, including the safe stopping and restarting of equipment and communication with affected occupiers.

HSE explains why installation inspection and testing require a competent person in its electrical safety guidance.

Read commercial EICR frequency and fixed wire testing. Explore EICR services, compliance remedial works and support for managing agents.

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