Terraced houses and what an EICR finds
Terraced streets shape Waltham Forest. Around 41% of homes are terraced houses and 45% were built before 1919, while detached houses make up only about 1% of the stock. Flats account for just under half of homes, some in converted houses and others in purpose-built blocks.
A Victorian or Edwardian terrace has often been rewired, but sometimes in stages. An EICR on this kind of house looks closely at the consumer unit (the fuse board) and whether circuits have RCD protection — the safety switch that cuts the power in a fault — as well as the wiring added for rear extensions, loft conversions and kitchens moved into the back addition. Every circuit is tested, and the report notes any part the inspector couldn't reach, such as a boarded-over loft.
When a terrace is split into two flats, upstairs and downstairs are normally separate installations with their own meters, so each needs its own report. Shared houses often have mains-wired fire alarms, and sometimes emergency lighting, which are tested and certified separately from the EICR. About one home in five dates from between the wars, and homes built since 2000 account for roughly one in seven.
Letting a property in Waltham Forest
Waltham Forest licenses most of its private rented homes. Since 1 May 2025, homes let to a single person, a single family or two sharers have needed a selective licence everywhere except Hatch Lane and Highams Park North and Endlebury wards, and shared homes need an HMO licence across the borough. The application asks HMO landlords for an electrical certificate, while selective licence conditions require a safety declaration on request.
However the licence works, the Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020 set the baseline. Your installation must be inspected and tested by a qualified person at least every five years, whichever ward the home is in. Existing tenants must receive a copy within 28 days, new tenants before they move in, and Waltham Forest Council within seven days of asking. Anything coded C1 or C2 — and any further investigation the report asks for — must be sorted within 28 days, or sooner if the report says so. Fines go up to £40,000.
For a terrace split into two flats, each studio to two-bedroom flat with one consumer unit starts from £90 inc VAT.
