Worth an Electrical Safety Check?

Prinzilla

We got a homebuyers report done on the property we're buying, the mains electricity was given a condition rating of 3 as there was no electrical safety certificate and the vendors stated the electrics had never been checked/ tested. The current owners are living in the property and have no issues day to day, but I'm a bit of a worrier and keep thinking 'what if we move in and there's a big problem'. The house was built in the mid 90s so I'm aware they might not be up to current standards but I'm wondering if it's worth getting a safety test done? 

davidmcn

It might just give you more to worry about, unless you're actually going to do everything it recommends?

Retired_Mortgage_Adviser

I wouldn't bother myself as an EICR is not going to tell you much anyway other than give you a list of things to do to bring it up to current standards (which regularly change). I've only ever gotten EICRs done where it's a condition of the landlord license. Never done it for any of the properties I have lived in.

The likelihood of there being a "big problem" (ie one that would cost big money to solve) in the electrics is very low, imho.

Having said that, if you are a worrier and don't mind spending the £100-200 that it might cost to get one done, no harm in doing so. Just keep in mind that it will probably fail the test and include a long list of required (C1, C2) remedial action before it can "pass" the test.

notrouble

Mid 90s it is almost certainly not "up to current standards" but few homes are as the standards change all the time. Nothing wrong with being up the standards of the mid 90s.

Unless the owner has done dodgy DIY 'improvements' to the electrics (and DIY per se is not a problem if done properly), the electrics should be fine.

But if you are a worrier, get an inspection done. Just make sure you distinguish in the report between "not up to current standards" and "not safe"!

Prinzilla

notrouble said:

Mid 90s it is almost certainly not "up to current standards" but few homes are as the standards change all the time. Nothing wrong with being up the standards of the mid 90s.

Unless the owner has done dodgy DIY 'improvements' to the electrics (and DIY per se is not a problem if done properly), the electrics should be fine.

But if you are a worrier, get an inspection done. Just make sure you distinguish in the report between "not up to current standards" and "not safe"!

That's what I thought, I'm not concerned about standards as such, its more just to check the safety. There has been an extension built and an en suite with electrical outlets within the last few years so I know the electrics have been added to but I believe they were both done by professionals. 

notrouble

Prinzilla said:

That's what I thought, I'm not concerned about standards as such, its more just to check the safety. There has been an extension built and an en suite with electrical outlets within the last few years so I know the electrics have been added to but I believe they were both done by professionals. 

Worth asking to see the Building Regulations sign off then. Extension should hae had this which would have included the electrics, and I believe electrics in a bathroom also need BR compliance though I'n not a expert on the standards. The risk might be if both jobs were done by cowboys and there's no compliance certificate.

Or again, they may have been done perfectly safely, but just not applied for BR certification. People do that all the ime and only realise it's a problem when they try to sell!

AdrianC

Prinzilla said:

We got a homebuyers report done on the property we're buying, the mains electricity was given a condition rating of 3

That's just "I haven't tested it, you might want to" generic backside-covering. The surveyor is not a sparky. You want the electrics checking, get a sparky to check them.

...as there was no electrical safety certificate and the vendors stated the electrics had never been checked/ tested.

No cert is needed, and who ever checks the electrics in their house?

The current owners are living in the property and have no issues day to day, but I'm a bit of a worrier and keep thinking 'what if we move in and there's a big problem'. The house was built in the mid 90s so I'm aware they might not be up to current standards but I'm wondering if it's worth getting a safety test done?

It definitely won't be up to current standards.

That's not necessarily a bad thing. BS7671 is the standard. In the mid 90s, it was on probably the 2nd revision of the 16th edition. Since then, there was 3 more revisions to the 16th, then the 17th, 3 revisions to that, now the 18th, as of a year ago. Consumer units used to need to be plastic, because metal carried a risk of shock. Now they need to be metal, because plastic carries a risk of burning. How many houses still have ancient rewireable-fuse boxes instead of CUs?

davidmcn

Or to put it another way OP, how often have the electrics been checked/upgraded at any place you've previously lived?

FreeBear

notrouble said:

Prinzilla said:

That's what I thought, I'm not concerned about standards as such, its more just to check the safety. There has been an extension built and an en suite with electrical outlets within the last few years so I know the electrics have been added to but I believe they were both done by professionals. 

Worth asking to see the Building Regulations sign off then. Extension should have had this which would have included the electrics, and I believe electrics in a bathroom also need BR compliance though I'n not a expert on the standards.

Electrical installations in a wet area (i.e. bathroom or shower room) is a "notifiable work". So Building Control needs to be told about the work, and it needs to be signed off. Most electricians will self certify the work and do all the necessary BC notification.

There are also strict rules on where electrical outlets can be located within a "wet area" - General rule of thumb: No sockets in a bathroom, shower or wet room. Shaver outlets may be permitted if a certain distance from a bath or shower.

OP - If no paperwork for the building/electrical work is available, you should be able to check with the local council to see if anything has been issued. Most councils have an online portal where you can do searches going back to 1980s or so.

notrouble

FreeBear said:

OP - If no paperwork for the building/electrical work is available, you should be able to check with the local council to see if anything has been issued. Most councils have an online portal where you can do searches going back to 1980s or so.

But be cautious about actually talking to /asking the council, as highlighting an issue with them would invalidate the option of indemnity insurance as a solution.

AdrianC

notrouble said:

FreeBear said:

OP - If no paperwork for the building/electrical work is available, you should be able to check with the local council to see if anything has been issued. Most councils have an online portal where you can do searches going back to 1980s or so.

But be cautious about actually talking to /asking the council, as highlighting an issue with them would invalidate the option of indemnity insurance as a solution.

Not that an indemnity is really worth the paper it's written on.

It'll cover the legal costs of the council chasing after not having BR sign-off. Woo. The chances of them actually doing that are somewhere approaching zero, even assuming the time for them doing so hasn't passed.

It won't pay for the work to be brought up to scratch if it isn't.