How do you get an EICR, and who is qualified to do one?

In England, a landlord gets an EICR by arranging an inspection and test of the fixed electrical installation by a competent inspector, then keeping and supplying the report required by the rental regulations. The awkward part is not the booking process; it is knowing who is legally allowed to sign the report and whether an “online certificate” is real.

Who can carry out an EICR?

No UK law requires an electrician to hold the 2391 qualification or belong to NICEIC, NAPIT or any scheme; the legal test is competence to inspect and test to BS 7671, and Scotland uses the term “competent person” while England, Wales and Northern Ireland use “qualified person”. In England, the regulations define a qualified person as someone “competent to undertake the inspection and testing required under regulation 3(1) and any further investigative or remedial work in accordance with the electrical safety standards”; Wales uses the same competence test for someone “competent to undertake the inspection and testing of an electrical service installation”, and Northern Ireland requires inspection and testing “by a qualified person”. Scotland is worded differently: “An inspection carried out in pursuance of section 19A must be carried out by a competent person.” A normal electrician can therefore do an EICR if they are competent for inspection and testing, but not merely because they do ordinary installation work.

How do you get an EICR?

You get an EICR by booking a competent electrician or inspection company to attend the property, inspect and test the fixed installation, and issue an Electrical Installation Condition Report showing the result and the next inspection date. The landlord’s legal duty in England is to “ensure every electrical installation in the residential premises is inspected and tested at regular intervals by a qualified person” and then “obtain a report from the person conducting that inspection and test, which gives the results of the inspection and test and the date of the next inspection and test”. In practice, searches such as “landlord electrical safety certificate near me” lead to local electricians, national booking sites and certificate marketplaces; one supplier advertises that “you can book an EICR from just £69 with an accredited electrician near you.” Abodient can hold the EICR certificate against the property, record its expiry, and show which compliance items are overdue across a landlord’s portfolio.

Can you get an EICR online?

You can book and pay for an EICR online, but the inspection is a physical site visit, so no EICR obtained entirely online is valid. The legal duty is not to buy a PDF; it is to have the installation “inspected and tested at regular intervals by a qualified person”, which necessarily means access to the property, consumer unit, circuits and accessories. Online services are useful for arranging the job: one booking page says, “Choose your service, pick a time, and pay securely online.” That does not make the electrical test remote. A landlord electrical safety certificate ordered online is valid only if a competent person actually attends, carries out the inspection and test, and issues the report. Any service implying that it can provide an electrical certificate for a rental property online without an electrical test at the rented property is selling the paperwork without the statutory inspection.

Can you download an EICR template and fill it in yourself?

You can download a blank EICR template, but a landlord filling it in themselves does not create a valid rental-property EICR unless they are the competent qualified person who carried out the inspection and test. The IET says blank model forms are available: “Download compliant blank model forms for certification and reporting, suitable for printing out and filling in by hand, are available in PDF format to download.” That is a form, not authority to self-certify. In England, the landlord must ensure the installation is inspected and tested “by a qualified person”; in Wales the report must set out the results of “an electrical safety inspection carried out by a qualified person”; and in Scotland the inspection “must be carried out by a competent person.” EICR terms and conditions, a free PDF download or an electrical installation condition report rental property template cannot replace the inspector’s competence, test results or signature.

Can you check online whether a property already has an EICR?

No national EICR register exists, so you cannot reliably check online whether a property already has an EICR. The current rental rules work by possession and supply of the report, not by public lookup: in England, for example, the landlord must “supply a copy of that report to the local housing authority within 7 days of receiving a request in writing for it from that authority.” That is not an EICR certificate check online for tenants, buyers or landlords taking over a property. The practical route is to ask the landlord, agent, seller, previous managing agent or electrician who carried out the test. The future Private Rented Sector Database is different: the Renters’ Rights Act 2025 provides for “entries in respect of dwellings which are, or are intended to be, let under residential tenancies,” and those entries are expected to carry per-dwelling compliance records, but the database has not launched.

What happens if the electrician does not give you the certificate?

In Scotland the electrician must hand the record to the landlord; in England, Wales and Northern Ireland obtaining the EICR is the landlord’s duty, so a missing certificate is usually a contractual dispute with the electrician as well as a compliance problem for the landlord. Scotland is the clear exception because the statutory record must be “given to the landlord.” In England, the rental regulations put the duty on the landlord to “obtain a report from the person conducting that inspection and test,” rather than creating a separate statutory handover offence by the electrician. If the electrician has been paid and refuses to provide the report, the Consumer Rights Act 2015 helps frame the remedy: “Every contract to supply a service is to be treated as including a term that the trader must perform the service with reasonable care and skill,” and, where no deadline was agreed, the service must be performed “within a reasonable time.” Non-payment is different; some electricians will not release certificates until paid.

Can a non-electrician change a light fitting?

A non-electrician can usually change a like-for-like light fitting, but the work must still be safe, and a landlord, employer or contractor must use someone with enough knowledge or supervision where danger could arise. In England, the notifiable electrical-work rule applies only where the work falls within specified categories; the regulation begins: “A person intending to carry out building work in relation to which Part P of Schedule 1 imposes a requirement is required to give a building notice or an application for building control approval with full plans where the work consists of—”. The IET gives the practical example more plainly: “Examples include adding a lighting or power point to an existing circuit, adding a spur to an existing circuit or replacing a light fitting.” Wales expressly exempts “replacing any fixed electrical equipment” where no new cabling is involved, and Scotland exempts replacement of an “electrical fixture” with one of the same general type. Safety still governs the job.

Last reviewed August 2026.

Sources

• England EICR qualified person definition — Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020, reg. 2: "“qualified person” means a person competent to undertake the inspection and testing required under regulation 3(1) and any further investigative or remedial work in accordance with the electrical safety standards; Source
• England landlord duty to inspect/test — SI 2020/312: "(b)ensure every electrical installation in the residential premises is inspected and tested at regular intervals by a qualified person; and Source
• England duty to obtain report — SI 2020/312: "(a)obtain a report from the person conducting that inspection and test, which gives the results of the inspection and test and the date of the next inspection and test; Source
• Wales qualified person definition — WSI 2022/6, reg. 6: "“qualified person” (“person cymwysedig”) means a person who is competent to undertake the inspection and testing of an electrical service installation, and any further investigative or remedial work, in accordance with the electrical safety standards; Source
• Wales condition report by qualified person — WSI 2022/6, reg. 6: "(a)is a condition report setting out the results of an electrical safety inspection carried out by a qualified person; Source
• Northern Ireland qualified person duty — NISR 2024/201, reg. 3: "(b)ensure every electrical installation in the dwelling-house is inspected and tested at regular intervals by a qualified person; and Source
• Scotland competent person duty — Housing (Scotland) Act 2006 s.19B / Housing (Scotland) Act 2014 s.23: "An inspection carried out in pursuance of section 19A must be carried out by a competent person. Source
• Scotland handover duty — Housing (Scotland) Act 2006 s.19B: "(a)given to the landlord, and Source
• Government guidance on choosing qualified persons — GOV.UK: "Guidance has been produced by the electrical safety industry that covers how landlords can choose a qualified person to conduct inspections and tests of electrical installations, and checks of electrical equipment covered by the regulations. Source
• EICR booking price example — MyConstructor: "At MyConstructor, you can book an EICR from just £69 with an accredited electrician near you. Source
• Online booking example — First Certify: "Choose your service, pick a time, and pay securely online. Source
• IET model forms — IET: "Download compliant blank model forms for certification and reporting, suitable for printing out and filling in by hand, are available in PDF format to download. Source
• Local authority supply duty — SI 2020/312: "(c)supply a copy of that report to the local housing authority within 7 days of receiving a request in writing for it from that authority; Source
• Private Rented Sector Database — Renters' Rights Act 2025 s.75: "(b)entries in respect of dwellings which are, or are intended to be, let under residential tenancies, and Source
• PRS Database not launched — Landlord OS: "Until it launches, there is no way to check it — the system does not exist yet. Source
• Consumer Rights Act 2015 s.49: "Every contract to supply a service is to be treated as including a term that the trader must perform the service with reasonable care and skill. Source
• Consumer Rights Act 2015 s.52: "In that case the contract is to be treated as including a term that the trader must perform the service within a reasonable time. Source
• England Building Regulations 2010 reg.12: "A person intending to carry out building work in relation to which Part P of Schedule 1 imposes a requirement is required to give a building notice or an application for building control approval with full plans where the work consists of Source
• Wales Building Regulations Schedule 4: "replacing any fixed electrical equipment which does not include the provision of Source
• Scotland Building Regulations 2004 Schedule 3: "Any work associated with the replacement of a fitting or equipment, in whole or in part, by another of the same general type, including a sanitary facility (together with any relevant branch soil or waste pipe), rainwater gutter or downpipe, solid fuel combustion appliance, electrical fixture, ventilation fan, chimney or flue outlet fitting or terminal, fire hydrant or main, lift or escalator, solid waste chute or container, kitchen fitments or other fitted furniture and ironmongery. Source
• England and Wales Part P safety standard — Building Regulations 2010 Sch.1 Part P: "P1. Reasonable provision shall be made in the design and installation of electrical installations in order to protect persons operating, maintaining or altering the installations from fire or injury. Source
• Electricity at Work Regulations 1989 reg.16: "No person shall be engaged in any work activity where technical knowledge or experience is necessary to prevent danger or, where appropriate, injury, unless he possesses such knowledge or experience, or is under such degree of supervision as may be appropriate having regard to the nature of the work. Source
• Northern Ireland Electricity at Work Regulations 1991 reg.16: "A person shall not be engaged in any work activity where technical knowledge or experience is necessary to prevent danger or, where appropriate, injury, unless he possesses such knowledge or experience, or is under such degree of supervision as may be appropriate for that purpose having regard to the nature of the work. Source
• IET Part P FAQ: "Examples include adding a lighting or power point to an existing circuit, adding a spur to an existing circuit or replacing a light fitting. Source