The Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government (MHCLG) has published its formal response to the consultation held on electrical safety in Private rented properties.
The response reiterates what has been said previously in that subject to parliamentary time, regulations will be introduced requiring private landlords to undertake 5 yearly checks of electrical installations in their properties. Landlords will be given 6-months notice of the regulations before they come into force to allow them time to adapt.
The regulations will apply to all new private tenancies initially and then be extended to all existing tenancies a year after initial commencement. Properties that already have an electrical installation condition report (EICR) will not be required to replace it for 5 years from the date of that initial report. For new and fully rewired properties, a valid electrical installation certificate can be presented in place of the EICR.
Electrical safety checks will need to be carried out by those with the required skills. New guidance for landlords that demonstrates which qualifications are required will be produced. Landlords will then need to make use of that guidance to determine who is competent to carry out any electrical inspection.
Existing competent person scheme operators will be invited to set up an electrical inspection and testing scheme which inspectors and testers may elect to join.
This will be an additional burden on some landlords, although HMO landlords will already be doing this. However, this has been well flagged and is not a surprise.
Published 7 February 2019
