Exactly What Does an EICR Cover? Complete Guide for London Property Owners
21 September 2026
If you have been asked for an EICR, are buying a property, preparing to let a flat or simply want to know whether the electrics in your home are safe, one of the first questions is usually very simple:
What does an EICR actually cover?
It is an important question because an Electrical Installation Condition Report is much more detailed than somebody looking at your fuse box and checking a few sockets. At the same time, an EICR is not a general inspection of every electrical appliance, heating system or piece of equipment inside a property.
An EICR is primarily concerned with the condition and safety of the fixed electrical installation.
That can include the consumer unit, fixed wiring, sockets, lighting circuits, protective devices, earthing, bonding and other parts of the installation that distribute electricity around the property.
For landlords in England, current government guidance describes the inspection as covering the fixed electrical parts of the premises, including wiring, socket outlets, light fittings and the consumer unit.
But there is much more behind those few words.
At London EICR Certificates, we regularly receive questions such as:
“Will every socket be tested?”
“Will the electrician test my boiler?”
“Does an EICR include the smoke alarms?”
“My underfloor heating thermostat is not working — will the EICR diagnose it?”
“Does the electrician have to turn the electricity off?”
“What happens if something fails?”
“Will an old fuse board automatically fail?”
This guide explains those questions properly.
If you already know you need an inspection, you can view our EICR services or book an EICR online.
EICR stands for Electrical Installation Condition Report.
The purpose of the inspection is to assess whether an existing electrical installation is safe for continued use and to identify defects, deterioration, damage or other conditions that could affect electrical safety.
It is therefore different from an Electrical Installation Certificate issued following certain new installation work.
An EICR concerns an installation that is already in service.
The electrician does not simply ask:
“Does the electricity work?”
A circuit can operate normally while still containing a potentially dangerous defect.
For example, a socket can supply electricity even though there is a problem with protective earthing. A circuit may appear completely normal during everyday use while the RCD protecting it does not operate within the required parameters.
This is one reason professional electrical inspection and testing is very different from a basic visual check.
A properly carried-out EICR combines visual inspection, electrical testing and professional assessment of the fixed installation.
The precise extent depends on the property, installation, accessibility, agreed limitations and what the inspector discovers.
For a typical London residential property, the inspection can involve the following areas.
The consumer unit is one of the most important areas examined during an EICR.
It distributes electricity through the property’s circuits and contains protective devices intended to operate when electrical faults occur.
The inspector may assess matters such as:
This does not mean that simply having an older consumer unit automatically results in an unsatisfactory EICR.
That distinction is important.
An EICR is an assessment of safety, not an exercise in replacing everything that is not brand new.
Older equipment may result in recommendations depending on its design, condition and the installation surrounding it, but observations should be based on the actual safety issue identified.
A major part of an EICR concerns the fixed wiring running through the property.
Much of that wiring is hidden inside walls, ceilings, floors and containment, so an EICR is not normally an intrusive building survey involving opening every wall.
Instead, the electrician uses inspection and electrical testing to evaluate the accessible installation and obtain measurements that can reveal problems which may not be visible.
Issues can include:
London properties can be particularly varied.
During the same working week an inspector may encounter a recently constructed apartment, a Victorian conversion, an ex-local-authority flat, a house that has been extended several times and a commercial premises with multiple three-phase distribution boards.
There is no single electrical installation that represents every London property.
Sockets form another important part of an electrical safety inspection.
The electrician is interested not only in whether a socket supplies electricity but whether the circuit and protective measures associated with it are satisfactory.
Potential issues can include:
A socket that “works” is therefore not necessarily evidence that the circuit is electrically sound.
Not necessarily in the way customers sometimes imagine.
An EICR is based on inspection and testing of the electrical installation, but this does not mean that every component of every installation is dismantled.
The extent of inspection can involve sampling, professional judgement and agreed limitations.
For example, access may be prevented by:
Commercial properties can present additional complications because parts of the installation may supply critical equipment that cannot simply be disconnected during normal operating hours.
The report should identify relevant limitations.
This is also why access matters.
If you are arranging an EICR for a tenanted flat, asking the tenant to provide reasonable access to the consumer unit, sockets and other parts of the installation can make the inspection more efficient.
Lighting circuits form part of the fixed electrical installation and are therefore relevant to an EICR.
The inspection may identify issues with items such as:
Again, the important point is that an EICR assesses electrical safety.
It is not simply checking whether each light bulb turns on.
A failed lamp is not the same thing as an unsafe electrical installation.
Earthing is fundamental to electrical safety.
Where an electrical fault occurs, the protective arrangements of the installation are intended to reduce the risk of electric shock and allow protective devices to operate correctly.
The inspector therefore considers the installation’s earthing arrangements and obtains relevant test measurements.
Problems involving earthing can be significantly more serious than cosmetic issues such as an old accessory or untidy labelling.
Protective bonding is another area that can cause confusion for property owners.
Depending on the installation and circumstances, the inspector will assess whether required bonding arrangements are present and appropriate.
Customers sometimes first hear terms such as:
after receiving an EICR.
If something has been coded on your report and you do not understand it, our guide to how to read and understand an EICR report explains the report in considerably more detail.
Residual Current Devices — normally shortened to RCDs — are protective devices designed to disconnect the electrical supply rapidly under certain fault conditions.
Testing may therefore include the operation and performance of installed RCD protection.
Modern properties may also use RCBOs, which combine certain protective functions within individual devices.
Whether the absence of a particular modern device results in C1, C2, C3 or another outcome depends on the actual installation and applicable circumstances.
This is another reason EICR coding should not be reduced to statements such as:
“Old = fail.”
Electrical installations need to be assessed as installations.
Electricity and water require particular consideration.
Bathrooms can therefore receive close attention during an EICR.
The inspector may consider:
A bathroom can look completely modern while containing an electrical defect behind the finish.
The opposite can also be true: an older-looking bathroom does not automatically mean the installation is unsafe.
Testing matters.
This is where an EICR becomes very different from an ordinary visual inspection.
Depending on the installation and inspection scope, electrical testing can include several different measurements and checks.
Continuity testing helps assess whether conductors that should form an electrically continuous path actually do so correctly.
One example is continuity associated with protective conductors.
Another common area is ring final circuits.
An abnormal reading can indicate that further investigation is necessary.
For property owners, the key point is this:
A circuit can appear to function normally even where continuity is not as expected.
That is why electrical test instruments are necessary.
Electrical conductors are insulated from one another and from earth.
Insulation resistance testing can help identify deterioration or faults affecting that insulation.
Problems can develop because of factors such as:
This is another fault that generally cannot be assessed simply by looking at a socket.
Correct polarity is important to the safe operation of an electrical installation.
Testing can identify situations where conductors have been connected incorrectly.
Reversed polarity is a good example of a defect that may not be obvious to somebody simply using an electrical outlet.
Earth fault loop impedance measurements help assess whether protective devices can operate appropriately under fault conditions.
This is one of the technical areas of an EICR that customers rarely see but which illustrates why professional inspection requires competent testing rather than a checklist alone.
Where RCDs are installed, their operation can be tested using appropriate equipment.
The inspector is interested in whether protective devices function correctly — not simply whether the test button appears to work.
Usually, some interruption should be expected.
Certain electrical tests require circuits to be safely isolated.
The extent and duration depend on the property and installation.
For most residential customers this can mean temporary interruptions while testing is carried out.
Commercial premises require more planning.
If a distribution board supplies:
tell the EICR provider before the inspection.
For commercial EICRs, testing sometimes needs to be planned around operating hours or completed in stages.
We provide commercial EICR certificates in London and can discuss distribution boards, operational restrictions and access before attendance.
This is one of the biggest misunderstandings.
An EICR primarily concerns the fixed electrical installation.
Portable electrical appliances are generally a separate matter.
Government guidance specifically describes the electrical installation inspection as concerning fixed electrical parts such as wiring, sockets, light fittings and the consumer unit. Current guidance now separately deals with electrical equipment supplied by social landlords.
Therefore, an EICR should not automatically be treated as a PAT test of every appliance in the property.
Typical portable equipment can include items such as:
kettles, televisions, lamps, computers and certain plug-in appliances.
If you require appliance testing as well as an EICR, tell us when requesting your quotation.
No — they are different inspections.
An easy way to understand the distinction is:
EICR: primarily examines the fixed electrical installation.
PAT / in-service equipment testing: concerns electrical equipment and appliances within its relevant scope.
The two services can complement one another, particularly for landlords and commercial premises, but one should not automatically be assumed to include the other.
We also provide PAT testing in London where required.
An EICR is not a boiler service.
This distinction matters.
Where a boiler or heating appliance forms part of the electrical installation through its fixed electrical supply, relevant electrical aspects may fall within the scope of the inspection.
But an EICR is not intended to diagnose:
If your boiler has stopped producing hot water, you should not book an EICR on the assumption that the EICR will diagnose the boiler fault.
A separate heating or electrical fault-finding visit may be more appropriate depending on the problem.
This is another question we regularly encounter.
The answer depends on exactly what somebody means by “check”.
The fixed electrical supply associated with an electrically powered underfloor heating installation may be relevant to an EICR.
However, an EICR is not automatically a specialist diagnostic investigation of an underfloor heating system.
For example, imagine a property buyer tells us:
“The thermostat does not appear to work and the surveyor thinks there may be a problem with the underfloor heating. Will the EICR find the fault?”
The correct answer is not to promise that it will.
The EICR can assess relevant parts of the electrical installation within its scope, but diagnosing why a thermostat, controller, heating mat, sensor or underfloor heating zone is not functioning can require separate fault finding.
That distinction protects the customer from booking the wrong service.
An EICR should not be treated as a complete fire-alarm inspection.
Where equipment is connected to the fixed electrical installation, relevant electrical supply issues may be considered. However, inspecting the electrical installation is different from verifying that an entire fire alarm or smoke detection system complies with every requirement applicable to that system.
Landlords also have separate fire-safety responsibilities. GOV.UK guidance, for example, lists smoke and carbon monoxide alarm responsibilities separately from electrical safety responsibilities.
For HMOs, commercial premises and larger buildings, fire alarm requirements can be considerably more complex.
Yes. The consumer unit is a central part of the fixed electrical installation.
However, the purpose is not to sell every customer a new fuse board.
An inspector may encounter:
What matters is the safety significance of what has actually been found.
Not every difference between an older installation and the newest installation standard automatically makes an existing electrical installation unsatisfactory.
The observation and classification have to reflect the condition and risk identified.
This distinction becomes important with equipment such as:
A competent EICR should distinguish between an actual potentially dangerous condition and an improvement recommendation.
Knowing what an EICR does not do can be just as important as knowing what it does.
An EICR is not normally:
An EICR assesses the condition of the electrical installation at the time of inspection within its stated scope and limitations.
That last point is important.
No legitimate electrical inspection can guarantee that a component will never subsequently fail.
Electrical installations contain many concealed components.
Cables may run:
An EICR cannot reasonably require a property to be dismantled simply to expose every centimetre of cable.
There can also be practical limitations.
For example:
A tenant may have locked a room.
Furniture may completely cover an electrical accessory.
A commercial circuit may supply equipment that cannot be isolated during business hours.
A distribution board may serve another part of a building that is outside the agreed scope.
An inspector should record relevant limitations rather than pretending inaccessible areas were inspected.
That makes a properly documented limitation a sign of transparency — not automatically a sign of a poor report.
An EICR uses classification codes to communicate the significance of observations.
The principal codes customers encounter are C1, C2, C3 and FI.
C1 indicates danger is present and there is a risk of injury.
Current government guidance states that an inspector may make a C1 hazard safe before leaving the premises.
A C1 is not something a landlord should simply leave until convenient.
C2 indicates a potentially dangerous condition.
A report containing a C2 is considered unsatisfactory for the purposes described in current government landlord guidance and remedial work is required.
FI means further investigation is required without delay.
Sometimes an inspector identifies abnormal readings, inaccessible conditions or evidence suggesting another problem but cannot safely determine the complete cause during the normal EICR.
Further investigation can therefore be necessary before the appropriate remedial solution is known.
C3 is different.
It means improvement is recommended.
Government guidance explicitly says a C3 does not require remedial work for the EICR to be considered satisfactory.
This distinction is critical.
A customer should not be told that every C3 is mandatory work needed to “pass”.
The overall assessment depends on the observations recorded.
Under current government guidance for rented homes, C1 and C2 observations require remedial work and result in the installation being reported as unsatisfactory for continued use. FI also requires further investigation. C3 represents an improvement recommendation and does not by itself make the report unsatisfactory.
If you receive an unsatisfactory report, do not panic.
The next step is to understand:
London EICR Certificates can also provide remedial work for failed EICR certificates.
Consider a typical London rental flat.
The lights work.
The sockets work.
The tenant has never reported an electrical fault.
The consumer unit looks reasonably tidy.
From the landlord’s perspective, everything appears fine.
During an electrical inspection, however, test results can reveal something that was not visible during ordinary use — for example, a continuity issue or protective arrangement requiring further investigation.
This illustrates one of the most important principles behind an EICR:
Electrical safety cannot always be judged by whether everything appears to work.
That is precisely why inspection and testing are carried out.
Here is another realistic scenario.
A buyer is purchasing a London flat.
During the property survey, they notice that a thermostat appears non-functional. The surveyor suggests that the issue could relate to the underfloor heating.
The buyer then books an EICR and asks whether the electrician will diagnose the heating problem.
The distinction is important.
The EICR assesses the electrical installation within its agreed scope. Relevant electrical supplies may therefore be inspected or tested.
But the EICR should not be sold to the buyer as a guaranteed diagnosis of the underfloor heating fault.
If the system itself is malfunctioning, separate fault finding may be required.
This is exactly the type of situation where choosing the correct electrical service matters more than simply ordering “an electrical inspection”.
If you are buying a property and have a particular electrical concern, tell us what the surveyor has identified before booking. We can explain whether an EICR for homeowners is appropriate or whether you may require another type of investigation.
Another common situation involves a landlord who worries that an older consumer unit means their property will automatically fail.
That is not how a competent EICR should be approached.
The inspector assesses the actual installation.
Imagine an older installation where the board is not of the latest design.
The relevant questions are not simply:
“How old is it?”
Instead, the assessment considers matters such as:
The outcome should follow the actual findings.
A property owner should not be pressured into unnecessary replacement simply because the equipment is not the newest model.
If genuine defects are found, they should be clearly documented so the landlord understands what needs attention and why.
Commercial EICRs can be significantly more complicated.
Imagine a central London business premises with several distribution boards and a mixture of single-phase and three-phase circuits.
Some circuits serve ordinary lighting and sockets.
Others serve equipment that cannot simply be disconnected in the middle of trading.
This requires more planning than inspecting a one-bedroom flat.
Before attendance, useful information may include:
In commercial work, planning the inspection properly can reduce disruption substantially.
Our commercial EICR service in London covers offices, retail premises, restaurants, commercial units and other business properties across London.
For landlords, an EICR is not simply useful paperwork.
In England, current regulations require electrical installations in covered rented properties to be inspected and tested by a qualified person at least every five years. The rules now also extend into the social rented sector under the 2025 amendments.
The report must also specify when the next inspection is due, which could be earlier where appropriate.
Current guidance requires landlords to provide the report to:
Where remedial work or further investigation is required, the current rules generally require it within 28 days, or sooner where the report specifies a shorter period.
For landlord inspections, see our dedicated EICR certificates for landlords in London.
Electrical safety requirements are no longer something only private landlords need to consider.
The Electrical Safety Standards regulations were extended to the social rented sector through amendments made in 2025.
Government guidance states that the regulations came into force for relevant new social housing tenancies from late 2025. For certain existing social tenancies, transitional provisions require electrical installations to be inspected and tested before 1 November 2026.
That makes 2026 particularly important for:
For portfolios involving multiple properties, planning access and inspection capacity early can be considerably easier than attempting to complete a large programme close to a compliance deadline.
A homeowner does not need to wait until the property is being rented before checking the condition of its electrical installation.
Homeowners commonly request EICRs when:
This can be particularly useful in London where older properties may have passed through many owners and undergone multiple refurbishments.
A visually attractive renovation tells you relatively little about the history of the wiring hidden behind it.
Learn more about our EICR certificates for homeowners in London.
Property buyers frequently commission building surveys but pay less attention to the electrical installation.
Yet a surveyor is not carrying out the electrical testing contained within a specialist EICR.
For buyers, the report can provide useful information about the condition of the installation before completion.
It may reveal that the electrical installation is satisfactory.
It may identify relatively minor improvements.
Or it may identify defects that deserve further consideration before purchase.
The important thing is to understand what the EICR does — and what it does not.
An EICR is an electrical condition report.
It is not a complete building survey, heating-system survey, gas report or appliance test.
HMOs can present additional practical considerations.
Depending on the property, this can include:
If you operate an HMO, provide the property details when requesting the inspection so the quotation and expected inspection time are based on the actual installation.
Commercial electrical installations vary enormously.
A small office with one distribution board is fundamentally different from a multi-floor commercial property containing numerous boards and hundreds of circuits.
Pricing and duration may therefore depend on factors such as:
Sending photographs of distribution boards can be extremely useful when obtaining a commercial quotation.
For larger installations, we may request additional information before providing a fixed scope.
See Commercial EICR Certificates in London for more information.
There is no legitimate universal answer.
Inspection time depends on the installation.
Factors include:
A modern one-bedroom flat and a restaurant containing several three-phase distribution boards cannot sensibly be allocated the same inspection duration.
If somebody gives exactly the same testing time for every property regardless of size or electrical installation, that should raise questions.
Cost depends on the property and complexity of the installation.
Residential pricing is commonly influenced by property size and the number of consumer units.
Commercial pricing can depend much more heavily on distribution boards and circuit numbers.
We prefer customers to know the inspection cost before attendance rather than discovering an unexpected testing charge afterwards.
For current information, see our dedicated EICR certificate cost guide.
You can also use our website’s EICR price tools or contact us with the property information for a quotation.
There are two broad outcomes.
The EICR will record the overall condition as satisfactory.
Keep the complete report safely.
Landlords should retain it because current government guidance requires the report to be retained until the next inspection is required or completed, unless superseded by a more recent report.
Do not look only at the word “unsatisfactory”.
Read the actual observations.
You need to understand:
We can review failed EICR observations and provide a quotation for appropriate EICR remedial work.
Not necessarily in every situation.
This is another area where customers are sometimes given misleading information.
For landlords, current government guidance states that acceptable written confirmation following remedial work can include a satisfactory EICR, Electrical Installation Certificate, Minor Electrical Installation Works Certificate or other appropriate electrical certification depending on the work completed.
The correct documentation depends on the remedial work and circumstances.
You should not automatically assume that every remedial job requires paying for the whole inspection again from the beginning.
A little preparation makes the inspection easier.
Before the appointment:
Make sure the consumer unit is accessible.
Avoid storing boxes or furniture immediately in front of electrical equipment.
Arrange access to all relevant rooms.
Tell tenants that temporary power interruption may be necessary.
Tell us if the property has more than one consumer unit.
For commercial premises, identify any critical circuits or equipment that cannot be isolated during business hours.
If you have the previous EICR, make it available where possible.
If there is a known electrical issue, tell us before the inspection.
You should also provide accurate access contact details where somebody other than the person booking will meet the engineer.
For a normal residential booking, the most useful information is straightforward:
For a commercial property, photographs of the distribution boards and information about operating hours can help us quote more accurately.
You can submit your details through our online EICR booking page.
Price matters.
But the certificate itself should not be the sole objective.
The value of an EICR lies in the inspection and testing behind it.
A useful report should give the property owner meaningful information about the electrical installation.
Extremely rushed inspections create an obvious question:
How much meaningful inspection and testing was actually possible?
Equally, expensive does not automatically mean good.
When comparing EICR companies, look beyond the headline price.
Consider:
Electrical installations across London vary enormously.
A new Canary Wharf apartment may have a very different installation from a converted Victorian property in Islington.
A Chelsea flat renovated several times can contain wiring from multiple periods.
A central London commercial building may contain several distribution boards installed during different refurbishment programmes.
An ex-local-authority flat may have undergone numerous tenant and owner alterations.
This is why an EICR should not become a box-ticking exercise.
The inspector has to understand what is actually installed.
Our objective is straightforward:
Inspect the installation, record what is found, produce a clear Electrical Installation Condition Report and explain what happens next.
We arrange EICR inspections across London for:
If the installation is satisfactory, the report records that result.
If defects are identified, the observations should explain what needs attention.
Where remedial work is required, we can also provide a separate quotation rather than leaving the customer to interpret technical codes without assistance.
You can see examples of the type of work we undertake on our projects page.
If you need an electrical installation condition report for a London property, we can arrange the complete process.
Our services include:
Residential EICRs
For flats, houses and other residential properties.
Landlord EICRs
For rental-property electrical safety compliance.
Homeowner EICRs
For homeowners and property purchasers who want a detailed electrical condition assessment.
HMO EICRs
For houses in multiple occupation and licensed properties.
Commercial EICRs
For offices, shops, restaurants, commercial premises and larger electrical installations.
EICR remedial work
Where an inspection identifies defects requiring correction or further investigation.
PAT testing
Where electrical equipment testing is also required.
We cover London across the M25 area. You can view our areas we cover or proceed directly to book your EICR online.
An EICR involves inspection and testing of the electrical installation, but it should not automatically be interpreted as dismantling every socket in the building. The extent of inspection can involve sampling, accessibility, professional judgement and recorded limitations.
Yes. The consumer unit or fuse board is an important part of the electrical installation and is inspected as part of an EICR.
Yes. Fixed wiring is a core part of the installation being assessed. Because much of the wiring is concealed, electrical testing is used alongside visual inspection.
Portable appliance testing is normally separate from an EICR. An EICR primarily concerns the fixed electrical installation.
No. EICR inspection and PAT/in-service equipment testing are separate services, although they can be arranged together where required.
The relevant fixed electrical supply may fall within the electrical installation, but an EICR is not a boiler service or full boiler diagnostic.
Not necessarily. Relevant electrical installation elements may be assessed, but diagnosing a faulty thermostat, controller, heating element or underfloor heating system may require separate fault finding.
An EICR should not be treated as a complete fire-alarm inspection. Fire alarm and smoke alarm requirements can involve separate inspection and testing obligations.
Temporary isolation is normally necessary for certain tests. Customers should expect some interruption to the electrical supply during inspection.
No. Age alone does not determine the outcome. The inspector assesses the actual installation, its condition, protective measures and safety implications.
C2 means potentially dangerous. Current government guidance states that C2 observations require remedial work and result in the report being unsatisfactory.
No. C3 means improvement recommended. Government guidance confirms that a C3 does not itself make the report unsatisfactory.
For covered rented properties in England, the electrical installation must generally be inspected and tested at least every five years, although the report can specify an earlier date for the next inspection.
An EICR is a professional assessment of the condition and safety of a property’s fixed electrical installation.
It goes considerably further than checking whether the lights and sockets work.
Depending on the property, it can involve inspection and testing of the consumer unit, circuits, fixed wiring, socket outlets, lighting, earthing, bonding, protective devices and other relevant parts of the electrical installation.
What it does not automatically provide is equally important.
An EICR is not a boiler service, gas safety inspection, PAT test, heating diagnostic, fire risk assessment or invasive survey of every concealed cable.
The purpose is to obtain an evidence-based picture of the electrical installation’s condition, identify defects that could affect safety and clearly record what — if anything — needs further attention.
For landlords, this information forms an important part of electrical safety compliance.
For homeowners and buyers, it provides information that cannot be obtained simply by looking at a property.
For commercial organisations, it can help identify electrical risks and plan maintenance before defects develop into larger operational problems.
If you need an EICR certificate in London, London EICR Certificates provides inspections for residential, landlord, homeowner, HMO and commercial properties throughout London.
Book your EICR inspection online
Or explore our full EICR services in London.
Find answers to common questions about EICR certificates and electrical safety inspections in London. Visit our FAQ page on EICRcertificates.com for more information.
