Notifiable work without paperwork

sn1987a

Hi!
The owners of the house we want to buy replaced the fusebox but they don't have a certificate showing that the work done complies with the building regulations. They had an electrician's inspection and he said that the fusebox doesn't meet the 2016/17 standards as it is plastic.
What can we do? What should be the next step?
thank you!

ProDave

An EICR (Electrical Installation Condition Report) cannot fail an installation because the consumer unit does not meet the current standards. As long as it complied with the standards when it was installed the most you can do is give it a Code 3, improvement recommended. Any electrician giving it a C2 or C1 and therefore an "unsatisfactory" either does not understand the rules, or is just plain touting for unnecessary work.

The other issue, not having a part P compliance certificate, well when was the work done? Can you post a picture of the new consumer unit?

foxy-stoat

Buy the property or not. Get your own electrician to replace the consumer unit or at least check that everything is ok.


Electrical standards change all the time, it still may be safe but not upto current standards for new installations.

sn1987a

Thank you for your replies. I don't have a picture (yet). It was installed in 2014 or 2015. Is there a way to prove now that it complies the 2014/2015 regulations?

If I ask an electrician to check it, my understanding is that the answer will be it is not safe because it doesn't meet the current regulations. Is there a way to prove that it is safe without replacing it and without having any installation certificates?

dauphin

You are worrying about absolutely nothing. The fact that it doesn't meet current regulations does not mean that it is unsafe; merely that the regulations have changed (in mid-2015 I think).
They weren't selling unsafe consumer units in 2014/15 you know! Do you really think that people all over the country are ripping out 2 year old consumer units just because the regulations have changed? Next time they decide to change the regs are YOU going to have a nearly new consumer unit installed to replace the perfectly good existing one?
You should be reassured by the fact the unit was renewed as recently as 2014/15 and since the inspection you referred to in the original posting does not seem to have thrown up any other problems that's a good indication that the work was done properly and remains safe.

Cakeguts

When you buy a house you are going to be responsible for a lot of maintenance. So the first job you can do is to sort this out. It isn't a big enough problem to make a difference to whether the house sells or not and it isn't a big enough problem for you to lower your offer. Put it on your list of things to do when you have bought the house.

sn1987a

I understand what you say, I am just surprised that no certificate was obtained in such a recent work. We are not talking about completing a work 15 years ago, there is no certificate. How do I know that the work was completed by someone who actually knew what was doing?

Returning to my question, is there a way to prove that the consumer unit is safe without replacing it when there are no installation certificates?

dauphin

If you've seen the inspection report obtained by the sellers, then assuming it has been issued by an appropriately qualified electrician I'd be reasonably confident that the work was done properly. Unless you have reason to doubt it, it is up to you whether you want to invest your own money in commissioning your own report.

The best way to confirm whether the consumer unit itself is safe is to identify the make and model and satisfy yourself that it is of a reputable manufacture. Look for a BSI kitemark for example. Perhaps the sellers' electrical inspection records the make and model. Personally I'd be astonished if it turned out to be anything other than perfectly OK.

I don't understand your concern about this. Have you gone to these lengths over the consumer unit at the property where you are currently living?

Doozergirl

The regs changed in the early part of last year. We were coming to the end of an eighteen month project when my electrician told me he might have to change the new unit he'd put in himself to a metal one. Thankfully, that didn't didn't need to happen.

You can have the electrics checked for safety, you just can't have them signed of as currently compliant. There was certainly no issue with the old boxes, I think they just decided that metal was less flammable than plastic.

Doozergirl

'Safe now' is a more appropriate test for you than 'compliant then'

ProDave

sn1987a wrote: »

Thank you for your replies. I don't have a picture (yet). It was installed in 2014 or 2015. Is there a way to prove now that it complies the 2014/2015 regulations?

If I ask an electrician to check it, my understanding is that the answer will be it is not safe because it doesn't meet the current regulations. Is there a way to prove that it is safe without replacing it and without having any installation certificates?

t he new rules came into force on 1st December 2015. After that date any new consumer unit had to be made of non flammable material.

As I have said before, if you get an electrician to check in NOW the most he can say is C3, improvement recommended, he should not give it a C2 or C1.

The bigger worry is was it actually done by a competent electrician or a DIY installer?

In the scheme of things compared to the other costs of a new house, it is probably worth getiing it thoroughly checked and any remedial work done, but that would not necessarilly mean replacing what is a new consumer unit.