What Is an EICR? What the Electrician Tests and What the Report Tells You
Updated: 3 hours ago
An EICR (Electrical Installation Condition Report) is a formal report on the safety of the fixed wiring in a building: the consumer unit, circuits, sockets, switches, light fittings and earthing. A qualified electrician inspects and tests the installation against the current edition of BS 7671, the IET Wiring Regulations, and records anything that is dangerous, potentially dangerous or could be improved. It used to be called a Periodic Inspection Report, and many people still call it an electrical safety certificate.
What an EICR actually is (and is not)
An EICR is a report, not a certificate. Electrical Safety First's guidance for inspectors makes the point directly: it assesses the in-service condition of an installation as it stands on the day, measured against today's BS 7671, however old the wiring is.
That has two consequences. First, an older installation that does not match every current rule is not automatically unsafe; the inspector has to judge whether each shortfall actually creates a risk. Second, a satisfactory report does not last forever. The outcome only holds until the reinspection date the electrician writes on it.
The EICR is one of the IET's standard model forms, alongside the Electrical Installation Certificate (for new work) and the Minor Works Certificate (for small additions). If you have just had new circuits installed, you should get one of those instead, not an EICR.
What does the electrician check during an EICR?
The inspection has three parts. On a flat or smaller home it takes around 1 to 2 hours, longer for a bigger house or one with more circuits, as our guide to how long an EICR takes explains.
The visual inspection. The electrician opens the consumer unit and looks at every circuit protective device, the main earth, the bonding to gas and water pipes, and the condition of cables where they can be seen. Accessories are checked for damage, scorching, loose fronts and signs of overheating. Bathrooms get extra attention, because the distance of sockets and fittings from the bath or shower matters.
Dead tests (power off). With the supply isolated and proved dead, the electrician tests the continuity of the earth conductors, the continuity of ring circuits, insulation resistance between conductors and to earth, and polarity. These find broken earths, damaged insulation and wiring mistakes you cannot see.
Live tests (power on). With the supply back on, the electrician measures earth fault loop impedance and prospective fault current, and trip-tests every RCD. These confirm that a fault would disconnect the circuit fast enough to prevent a shock or fire.
Everything is written up in schedules of inspection and test results, circuit by circuit, which is the part of an EICR that tells you the work was actually done.
Is every circuit and socket tested?
Not always, and the report has to say what was left out. The extent of the inspection and any limitations (a locked room, a loft that could not be reached, furniture blocking sockets) must be recorded, along with the reason and who agreed to it. Electrical Safety First notes that the more limitations a report carries, the less it is worth.
On larger commercial installations, IET Guidance Note 3 allows sampling, for example at least 25% of final circuit distribution boards, as long as the sample is representative and increases if faults turn up. In a house there is rarely a good reason not to test every circuit, and it is fair to ask before you book.
What does the report look like?
A typical EICR runs to several pages:
The details of the property, the reason for the report and the extent and limitations of the inspection
A summary of the condition of the installation, with an overall result of satisfactory or unsatisfactory
Observations, each given a code: C1 (danger present), C2 (potentially dangerous), C3 (improvement recommended) or FI (further investigation)
A recommended date for the next inspection
The schedules of inspection and test results
Any C1 or C2 means the overall result must be unsatisfactory. The IET's model report treats C3 and FI observations as advisory: they do not change the overall result, however many there are, although an FI still needs investigating. Our EICR reporting service covers homes, rented property and commercial premises across Shropshire and the West Midlands.
If the inspector finds something immediately dangerous, such as exposed live parts, they should not wait for the paperwork. Electrical Safety First's guidance expects them to tell you on the spot and, with your agreement, make it safe before leaving.
Who needs an EICR, and how often?
It depends who you are.
Landlords: in England, the Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020 require an inspection at least every 5 years, with a copy of the report to tenants within 28 days. Amendments made in 2025 extended the same rules to social landlords, for new social tenancies from 1 December 2025 and existing ones from 1 May 2026. Wales has its own rules: a report no more than 5 years old, with a copy to the contract-holder within 14 days.
Homeowners: there is no legal requirement, but Electrical Safety First recommends an inspection at least every 10 years, and it is sensible when you buy a home. A recent report is also useful evidence if you ever have to ask does home insurance cover electrical wiring after an incident.
Businesses: the Electricity at Work Regulations 1989 require electrical systems to be maintained to prevent danger. The law sets no fixed interval, so most businesses follow the IET's recommended frequencies; our guide to how long an EICR lasts covers those in detail.
The electrician can also recommend a shorter interval than usual if the installation is ageing or heavily used.
EICR questions, answered
Is an EICR the same as a landlord gas safety certificate?
No. The gas check is annual and covers gas appliances; the EICR covers the fixed electrical installation and is due at least every 5 years for landlords. They are separate duties, and a landlord needs both where there is gas in the property.
Does an EICR include my appliances?
No. Plug-in appliances are covered by PAT testing, which is a separate inspection. An EICR stops at the socket outlet and fixed equipment such as a hardwired cooker or shower.
Will an EICR tell me if I need a rewire?
It will tell you the condition of each circuit, which is the evidence a rewiring decision should rest on. A report that simply says "rewire recommended" without observations and test results is not good enough; Electrical Safety First calls that kind of statement unacceptable. If the installation has reached the end of its safe life, a proper report explains why, and it often shows that targeted repairs or a new consumer unit will do instead of a full rewiring job.
How much does it cost?
It varies with the size of the property and the number of circuits; we set out typical UK ranges in our EICR cost guide.
Booking an inspection
An EICR is the most useful single document you can have on an electrical installation: it shows what is safe, what needs doing and how urgently. As an electrician in Shifnal, SM Electrical carries out EICRs across Wolverhampton, Telford and the surrounding area, and you can ask us for a quote with the property size and number of consumer units.
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