Homes in Barnet and what they mean for an EICR
More of Barnet's homes date from between the wars than from any other period. About a third were built from 1919 to 1939, and roughly one in five went up in the 1930s alone. Semi-detached houses make up more than a fifth of the stock, detached houses another 8%, and half of all homes are now flats.
Many interwar houses have been rewired at least once, but an EICR can still turn up a mix of eras. In homes of this age the inspector often finds an older consumer unit (the fuse board), circuits added over the years by different people, and extensions, loft rooms or garden offices wired onto the original supply. Every circuit is tested, and the report notes whether it has RCD protection — the safety switch that cuts the power in a fault.
Older and newer buildings sit alongside the suburbs. About one home in five dates from before 1919, and a council sample survey in December 2025 found many flats above shops or in converted pre-1920s houses. In those buildings it matters where each flat's meter and consumer unit are, and whether the stairs and hallway run from a separate landlord's supply, which needs its own report. New-build flats in the regeneration areas at Colindale and Brent Cross still need a report every five years once they are let.
Letting a property in Barnet
Whether or not your Barnet home needs a licence, the Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020 apply. They require an inspection and test by a qualified person at least every five years. Hand the report to your tenants within 28 days, to new tenants before they move in, and to Barnet Council within seven days if it asks. Fix anything coded C1 or C2 — and any further investigation the report asks for — within 28 days, or sooner if the report says so. Barnet, like any council, can fine landlords up to £40,000.
For a shared house the report also feeds your licence. Barnet asks for an EICR dated within five years with every HMO application, so book the inspection before you apply rather than after.
Flats above shops
If your flat sits over a shop on one of Barnet's high streets, the meter may be in a locked cupboard or the shop's back room. Sort out keys before the visit. A one or two-bedroom flat with a single consumer unit starts from £90 inc VAT.
