Electrical Safety Certificates for Landlords: EICR Requirements Explained

Do I Need an Electrical Safety Certificate (EICR) as a Landlord, and How Often?

Yes. If you let a home in England, the fixed electrical installation must be inspected and tested by a qualified person before the tenancy starts and at least every five years after that, or sooner if the last report sets an earlier date. Any remedial or further-investigation work the report requires must be done within 28 days of the inspection, and the council can fine you up to £40,000 for a breach.

These duties come from regulation 3 of the Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020. The report you get is usually called an Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR), and it is what most landlords mean by an "electrical safety certificate". The regulations have applied to new tenancies since 1 July 2020 and to existing tenancies since 1 April 2021.

Which Lettings the Rules Cover

The regulations apply where the tenant occupies the home as their only or main residence and pays rent, whether or not it is a market rent. "Tenancy" includes a licence to occupy. Lets where the occupier shares a kitchen, bathroom, toilet or living room with you or your family are excluded, and so are long leases and tenancies of 7 years or more, student halls, hostels and refuges, care homes, hospitals and hospices, other healthcare accommodation, and mobile homes, caravans and boats (Schedule 1; GOV.UK guidance).

The rules cover the fixed installation inside the home: wiring, sockets, light fittings, the consumer unit, and permanently connected equipment such as electric showers and extractor fans. They do not cover communal areas such as stairwells and corridors, although the council can still act on unsafe communal electrics under other legislation, such as the Housing Act 2004 (GOV.UK guidance).

What You Must Do, and When

Under regulation 3, you must:

• make sure the electrical safety standards (the 18th edition of the Wiring Regulations, BS 7671) are met while the home is let
• have the installation inspected and tested by a qualified person before the tenancy begins, then at intervals of no more than 5 years, or by any earlier date the last report sets
• get a report that gives the results and the date the next inspection is due
• give a copy to existing tenants within 28 days of the inspection, to a new tenant before they move in, and to a prospective tenant within 28 days of a written request
• give the council a copy within 7 days of a written request
• keep a copy until the next inspection is due or has taken place, whichever is later, and give a copy to whoever does the next inspection

Only work the report actually requires has a deadline:

The 28 days run from the date of the inspection, not from the date you receive the report. If your electrician takes a week to send the paperwork, you have three weeks left.

What the Codes on Your EICR Mean

The inspector grades each problem using the codes below. The duties and deadlines in this table come from regulation 3(4)–(6) and the GOV.UK guidance.

The last row is the one landlords most often miss. After remedial work, the confirmation must go to the council whether or not the council has asked for it (regulation 3(5)(c)).

Who Can Carry Out an EICR?

The regulations require a "qualified person", meaning someone competent to carry out the inspection, testing and any remedial work to the electrical safety standards (regulation 3(8)). No particular trade body is named in law. To find a competent electrician, the GOV.UK guidance points landlords to the Registered Competent Person Electrical register, Electrical Safety First's "find a registered electrician" service and the Electrical Safety Roundtable's guidance.

During the inspection the electrician checks whether any part of the installation is overloaded, whether there are shock or fire risks, whether any electrical work is defective, and whether earthing and bonding are adequate (GOV.UK guidance).

If the Tenant Won't Give Access, or the Work Takes Longer Than 28 Days

Since 1 November 2025 the regulations say a landlord is not in breach if they can show they took all reasonable steps to comply. A landlord whose tenant refuses entry has not failed to take reasonable steps just because they did not go to court to get in (regulation 3(2A)–(2B) and (6A)). The GOV.UK guidance gives examples of legitimate delays: complex or specialist work, work that depends on a third party (such as the energy supplier fitting an isolator before a consumer unit can be replaced), and tenant circumstances that need extra planning.

To rely on this defence you need evidence. Keep copies of every message about arranging access, and keep the dates of booked and missed appointments. The previous report and servicing records also help show the installation's condition.

Penalties and Enforcement

The local council enforces the regulations:

• Remedial notice. If the council has reasonable grounds to believe you are in breach, it must serve a remedial notice. If you don't comply, it can arrange the work itself and recover the cost from you.
• Urgent remedial action. If the report says urgent work is needed and you haven't done it in time, the council can arrange it with the tenant's consent, giving at least 48 hours' notice.
• Financial penalty. The council can impose a financial penalty of up to £40,000, and more than one penalty if the failure continues (regulation 11). The maximum was £30,000 until it was raised to £40,000 from 1 November 2025 for private landlords (SI 2025/1043, regulations 1 and 10).
• Challenging a penalty. You have 28 days to make written representations to the council. After the final notice, you can appeal to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) within 28 days (GOV.UK guidance).

For how councils use civil penalties across different housing offences, see our guide to landlord fines and civil penalties.

Frequently Asked Questions

LandlordReady tracks each property's EICR due date alongside your gas safety and other certificates. This guide is general information, not legal advice.