EICR rules for landlords: the five-year cycle, C-codes and the 28-day fix

What the law says

The Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020 apply to almost every private tenancy in England. Equivalent rules for social housing began to take effect from December 2025. The landlord must have the fixed electrical installation inspected and tested by a qualified and competent person at least every five years and hold a report that says the installation is Satisfactory.

The report is the EICR. It covers the fixed wiring: consumer unit, cables, sockets, switches, lights and earthing. It does not cover appliances. That is what PAT testing is for, and while PAT testing is not a legal requirement for landlords, it is good practice for any appliances you supply.

The deadlines that catch people out

There are four:

• –A copy of the report to existing tenants within 28 days of the inspection
• –A copy to any new tenant before they occupy the property
• –A copy to the local authority within seven days if they ask
• –Any C1, C2 or FI item fixed within 28 days, or sooner if the report says so, with written confirmation from the electrician sent to the tenant and, if they asked, the council within 28 days of the work

What C1, C2, C3 and FI mean

Every observation on an EICR gets a code. C1 means danger is present and we make it safe on the day, usually by isolating. C2 means potentially dangerous, the most common failing code: undersized bonding, no RCD protection on socket circuits, a plastic consumer unit under a wooden staircase. C3 means improvement recommended; it does not fail the report and there is no legal obligation to act, though it is often cheap to do. FI means further investigation is needed and it fails the report until resolved.

A report with any C1, C2 or FI is Unsatisfactory. Once the items are fixed and confirmed in writing, the installation is Satisfactory and the five-year clock runs from the original inspection date.

What it costs and how to keep it simple

Our EICR is £150 for a flat or house up to three bedrooms and £195 for larger properties, with a portfolio rate from £120 each for five or more. The report is emailed the same day to you and your agent. Remedials are priced separately and itemised, so you can take the report elsewhere if you prefer; most landlords do not, because we are already familiar with the property.

The simplest system: put the next-due date in your diary the day you receive the report and have your agent hold the PDF. If you own several properties, we can stagger inspections so they do not all fall due in the same month and send a reminder six weeks before each one.

Common failures in Manchester rentals

In terraces and converted flats across south Manchester and Salford the same items come up: no RCD protection on sockets, plastic consumer units, missing or undersized earthing to gas and water, borrowed neutrals on lighting circuits in older conversions and unlabelled boards where the inspector cannot tell what feeds what. Most are fixed with a consumer unit change, which is why board upgrades from £449 are so often the remedial.

An Unsatisfactory report is not a disaster. It is a list. We priced and fixed a Salford landlord's four C2 items and had a Satisfactory report to the agent nine days after the original inspection.

Questions people also ask