EICR for landlords: what the law requires in England

If you let a home in England, the law says you must have the electrical installation inspected and tested at least every five years by a qualified person, give your tenants a copy of the report, and get any remedial work or further investigation it calls for done within 28 days. The rules come from the Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector and Social Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020, and councils can fine landlords up to £40,000 for ignoring them.

The report you need is an Electrical Installation Condition Report, usually called an EICR.

Who the rules apply to

The regulations cover lettings in England where the tenant lives in the property as their only or main home and pays rent — HMOs included. They have applied to new tenancies since 1 July 2020 and to all existing tenancies since 1 April 2021.

Since 1 December 2025 the same duties apply to social landlords. For social tenancies granted before that date, the first inspection is due before 1 November 2026.

The Renters’ Rights Act 2025, which turned assured shorthold tenancies into assured periodic tenancies from 1 May 2026, didn’t change who these rules cover.

Lettings the rules don’t cover

• lodgers who share facilities with the landlord or the landlord’s family;
• long leases of seven years or more;
• student halls of residence;
• hostels and refuges;
• care homes, hospitals and hospices, and other NHS healthcare accommodation;
• moveable structures, vehicles and vessels.

If you’re not sure where your letting sits, the government guidance sets out the full list.

Your duties at a glance

A new tenancy doesn’t need a new EICR if the current report is under five years old and nothing on it is outstanding — just give the new tenant a copy before they move in.

A worked example

Say you let a two-bed flat with one consumer unit (fuse board) to a couple. The inspection finds one C2 — no main protective bonding, the earth connection that should be clamped to the incoming gas pipe — and two C3recommendations. Because of the C2, the report is unsatisfactory. Here is what you do:

1. Give your tenants a copy of the report within 28 days of the inspection.
2. Have a qualified electrician fit the bonding within 28 days of the inspection — sooner if the report says so.
3. Get written confirmation from them that the work is done and the installation now meets the standards. For a small job like this, it usually comes with a Minor Works certificate.
4. Within 28 days of the work being finished, send that confirmation and the report to your tenants and the council.
5. Note the two C3s. You don’t have to act on them, but they are worth budgeting for.

The next inspection is due on the date shown on the report — normally five years after the inspection for a rented home.

If the report finds problems

A C1 (danger present) or C2 (potentially dangerous) makes the report unsatisfactory. An FI (further investigation) is advisory on the latest report forms (BS 7671 Amendment 4, April 2026) but makes older-format reports unsatisfactory. The safe approach: deal with every C1, C2 and any FI the report asks for within the 28 days. C3s are recommendations the law doesn’t make you act on.

Our guides to EICR codes and what to do after an unsatisfactory EICR go through each step, and our remedial works page explains how we can help.

Choosing a qualified inspector

The regulations say the inspector must be a qualified person — someone competent to inspect and test to BS 7671, the UK wiring regulations. Membership of a particular scheme isn’t required. The government guidance suggests checking:

• their qualifications in the current wiring regulations and in periodic inspection and testing;
• their experience;
• their insurance.

The current standard is BS 7671:2018+A4:2026 — still the 18th Edition. There is no 19th Edition. Ask to see an example report, too; ours is on our sample report page. We test every circuit to BS 7671 and hold £5m public liability insurance.

What an EICR covers — and what it doesn’t

An EICR looks at the fixed installation: the consumer unit, wiring, sockets, switches, light fittings and the circuits to fixed equipment such as an electric shower or cooker. It doesn’t test plug-in appliances — kettles, toasters, lamps. For private landlords the regulations don’t require PAT testing, but if you supply appliances, PAT testing is a sensible way to show they are safe.

Smoke and carbon monoxide alarms are a separate duty: a smoke alarm on every storey with living accommodation, a carbon monoxide alarm in any room with a fixed combustion appliance (except a gas cooker), a check on the first day of each new tenancy, and prompt repairs when a tenant reports a fault. Councils can fine up to £5,000 — see our smoke and heat alarm installation service.

What happens if you don’t comply

Councils can serve a remedial notice requiring you to do the work, arrange the work themselves (with your tenant’s consent) and recover the cost, and impose a financial penalty of up to £40,000 — the maximum rose from £30,000 on 1 November 2025. It is a defence to show you took all reasonable steps to comply, for example if a tenant refused access. See our guide to landlord EICR fines.

Coming next: the landlord register

The Renters’ Rights Act 2025 creates a private rented sector database — a landlord register — planned to open region by region from 15 December 2026, with London planned for 15 July 2027. Each property entry is expected to need the current EICR (or EIC) and its expiry date; the detailed regulations are still in draft.

Licensing: check your council’s rules too

Many London boroughs run selective or additional licensing, and HMOs with five or more people from two or more households need a mandatory licence. Licence conditions commonly ask for a valid EICR. Our area pagessummarise each council’s current position.

Common mistakes

• Counting five years from the wrong date. The interval runs from the last inspection, not from when the tenancy began.
• Forgetting the council. After remedial work, the written confirmation goes to the council as well as your tenants — even if the council has never contacted you.
• Treating an FI as optional on an older-format report. On those forms it makes the report unsatisfactory.
• Letting the report lapse between tenancies. If it has run out, you need a new inspection before the next tenant moves in.
• Not keeping records. Note when each tenant got their copy and every attempt you made to arrange access.

What tenants should know

If you rent your home, you should get a copy of the EICR within 28 days of the inspection (or before you move in), plus written confirmation of any repairs it required. If not, ask your landlord first; the council can step in if the rules aren’t being followed.

Key points

• Inspect and test at least every five years (sooner if the report says so), with a valid report before each new tenancy.
• Copies go to existing tenants within 28 days, new tenants before they move in, and the council within 7 days if it asks.
• C1 and C2 (and FI on older forms) make a report unsatisfactory — deal with them within 28 days of the inspection.
• Send written confirmation of the work to tenants and the council within 28 days of finishing it.
• Penalties go up to £40,000; social landlords are now covered too.

Book your landlord EICR

We arrange access with your tenant or agent, test every circuit to BS 7671 and email you the report as a PDF, ready to pass on. Every code is explained in plain English, and if anything needs fixing you’re under no obligation to use us. You see the price, including VAT, before you book — from £90 inc VAT (£75 + VAT) for a studio to two-bed flat — and nothing is booked until we call to confirm.

Read about our landlord EICR service, see your price, or call us on 07301 010244.