The Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020 came into force on 1 June 2020. This means all new tenancies from 1 July 2020 (extending to all existing tenancies from 1 April 2021) will need to have a valid Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR) stating that the national standards for electrical safety are met.
Landlords of privately rented accommodation must:
For an inspection to be valid, it must be carried out by a “qualified and competent” person – this can be verified by ensuring the inspector is a member of a competent person scheme, or by having the person prove their competency (with proof of insurance, qualifications and experience).
The inspections will look at and test the “fixed” parts of the property such as wiring, plug sockets, light fittings and the fusebox as well as permanently connected equipment like extractor fans and showers.
The inspection will find out if:
Non-fixed electricals, such as cookers, fridges and televisions, will not be inspected. Landlords could carry out additional portable appliance testing (PAT) if they wish to, however, this is not required by law.
Once the inspection has been carried out, the landlord must obtain a report from the inspector; this report will detail the outcome and tell of any investigative or remedial works that will need to be carried out.
The report will show if the electrical installation should be safe for continued use. If the report does not recommend any investigative or remedial works, the landlord will not be required to do anything further other than supplying the report where necessary. The report will remain valid for five years.
Should the inspection come back with signs of ‘Danger present. Risk of injury’ or ‘potentially dangerous’ electrical issues, remedial work will be immediately required. If an inspector identified that ‘further investigative work’ is required, the landlord must also ensure this is carried out. The tenant and the local authority must then be given notice that the work has been carried out within 28 days of completing the work.
Should the inspector find that improvement is recommended, landlords do not have to make the improvement, but it would improve the safety of their property if they did.
A copy of the report must be given to the current tenant within 28 days of the inspection, or to any new tenant before they move in. Any prospective tenant who requests a copy of the report must also be given it within 28 days. If a local authority requests it, landlords must supply them with a copy of this report within 7 days of receiving the request.
If a landlord is found to be in breach of their duty, they can be fined up to £30,000.
We have already sourced and secured a suitably qualified person to carry out inspections, investigations and remedial works.
FleetMilne are currently focused on making sure that all tenancies that are coming up for renewal or are due to be occupied by new tenants are fully compliant with the new regulations. Landlords,your account manager will contact you ahead of us carrying out an inspection, but should they not hear back, they will automatically arrange your inspection to ensure you and your property remains compliant. There is a cost associated with the inspection and the production of a report and certificate, but your account manager will be in touch to let you know what this is.
We are looking to have all of our properties inspected and compliant by the end of 2020, regardless of if they are coming up for renewal or have new tenants incoming. This will ensure that all properties are safe and in line with the new regulations well before the 1 April 2021 deadline.
Should you wish to arrange for an inspection yourself, you need to let us know as soon as possible. Similarly, if there are remedial works required as a result of our inspection, you’ll need to let us know that you plan to undertake these yourself; otherwise, they will be carried out by our contractor in order to pass the inspection first time. You can do these works yourself, but you will need to pay for a further inspection as our inspector will not be able to guarantee the work, and will need to reinspect the apartment at a later date.
Newly built properties may already have an EICR, and so if your property was built in the last five years, we would advise that you reach out to your building managers or the original developers to request a copy. Unfortunately, where this is not possible, a new one will need to be issued.
Changes to the rules and regulations can be confusing and tricky to manage, but don’t worry, that is what we are here for. As your agent, you can rest assured that we are up-to-date and in control of the situation.
As always, our property management team is always on hand to help you. If you have any questions, please just give them a call on 0121 366 0456 (option 1).
Non-FleetMilne landlords, is your current agent not guiding you through these changes? It may be time to swap to new management. You can take advantage of our complete switch service and never have to worry about compliance again; click here to find out how.
