CASE STUDIES
Electrical Inspection
Report Case Study
The buyers were alerted to a house which beneath its great décor needed many repairs to bring its electrics to the best standard.
- Identifying C2 faults
- Re-negotiated house price
- Bringing electrical wiring up to standard
Get peace of mind regarding the safety of your home
Maintaining sound electrical wiring isn’t just a good idea, it could be a matter of life and death. BS 7671 (18th Edition):2018 + A2:2022 IET Wiring Regulations set out the national standard to which all electrical installations should conform to keep you and your home safe and sound. This standard recommends that electrical circuits are tested regularly – at least every 10 years. Sadly, many aren’t.
Electrical tests are thorough checks of the condition of a property’s wiring and should always be carried out if there’s no recent documentation available of a recent test. They can give you peace of mind regarding the safety of your home and will highlight any work needed to bring your wiring up to standard.
This case study highlights the importance of having a specialist carry out a test before you commit to purchase. It helps explain what a test looks like and the amount of detailed guidance you’re likely to get.
It also shows how neat and tidy decorations can be deceptive!
Our reports highlight any issues which bring electrical wiring up to standard
In this case, the buyer was recommended to have an electrical test in their Survey report. They were advised to have it completed before exchange of contracts, so they commission a qualified electrician to carry out the inspection. He has a qualification of NICEIC (National Inspection Council for Electrical Installation Contracting) which is the most common qualification, though there are equivalents.
The house is an extended semi, built about 35 years ago. So, it’s fairly modern and has been decorated to a great standard internally – lots of wow factor!
A popular report which electricians often use for residential property is an EICR (Electrical Installation Condition Report).
This is a detailed and thorough report (in this case extending to 24 sections). The content, though, is very clear to understand.
Our reports describe what has been done and any limitations to what the electricians could see or test.
Next, the report lists out any defects in the wiring. They are all graded so that you can understand the seriousness of the faults and know if there are any actions that need to be done urgently.
C1 and C2 are the codes to look out for, as these highlight dangerous (or potentially dangerous) problems.
At the bottom of each page of the report, the items are listed out in their codes.
In this property, there were 25 C2 defects that were potentially dangerous!
The report also gives a colour-coded summary of areas of the wiring that needs attention. The C2 faults are coded red and there were several present.
The Conclusion
It’s important when buying a property that you’re not dazzled by décor but take professional advice, especially on important topics such as electrics. Here, the buyers were alerted to a house which beneath its great décor needed many repairs to bring its electrics to best standard.
Having re-negotiated the price, they were able to move in, knowing that all the wiring was in great and safe order ……. and, no doubt, they could sleep well at night!
”Fabulous service from Peter Bray. Clear, concise, responsive and hugely practical in terms of their advice and counsel.
Liz WaltonOxford
