In November we sent an email to all Landlords detailing the new electrical regulations that came into force for all new tenancies from June 2020 and that the same regulations will come into force for all existing tenancies from 1st April 2021.
As 1st April rapidly approaches, the below clarifies these regulations.
In very simple terms as from 1st April 2021 private landlords must ensure:
• Electrical safety standards are met when the property is occupied during a tenancy.
• Every fixed electrical installation at the property is inspected and tested at least every five years by a qualified person.
NB: Where the most recent report requires an inspection and testing to be at intervals of less than five years, it must be at intervals specified in that report.
If an existing certificate was done longer than five years ago, regardless of whether it is valid for 10 years, it will not be applicable for these Regulations. Consequently, to comply with the Electrical Safety Standards the existing EICR must be less than five years old (dated back five years from when the tenancy agreement was signed).
Please also note that to meet the electrical safety standards, the inspection and test of the installation must be carried out in accordance with the eighteenth edition of the wiring regulations BS 7671:2018 (the national standard to which all domestic wiring must conform).
Following the inspection and testing a landlord must:
1. Obtain a report that includes the results of the inspection and test, and the date of the next inspection and test.
2. Supply a copy of that report to each existing tenant at the property within 28 calendar days of the inspection and test.
3. Supply a copy of the most recent report to any new tenant before the tenant moves in and to any prospective tenant within 28 days of receiving a request in writing for the report.
4. Retain a copy of the report until the next inspection and test is due as well as supply a copy to the person carrying out the next inspection and test.
For full details please see https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/electrical-safety-standards-in-the-private-rented-sector-guidance-for-landlords-tenants-and-local-authorities Or https://www.arla.co.uk/