Landlord EICR in Brentwood
Rented homes in Brentwood need an electrical safety certificate at least every five years, and at the start of every new tenancy.
Covering CM13, CM14, CM15 and the surrounding area.
Book a landlord EICR in BrentwoodWhat the regulations require of Brentwood landlords
The Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020 require the electrical installations in a rented home to be inspected and tested at intervals of no more than five years, and before a new tenancy begins. The inspection has to be carried out by a qualified and competent person, it is assessed against BS 7671, the UK wiring regulations, and it produces an EICR.
Once you have the report there are three further duties, and they are the ones landlords most often miss. A copy goes to the existing tenants within 28 days. A copy goes to any new tenant before they move in. And the local authority gets a copy within seven days if it asks for one.
Where the report is unsatisfactory, the remedial work has to be completed within 28 days, or sooner if the report specifies a shorter period, and you then need written confirmation that it has been done. That 28 day clock is why leaving the inspection until the deadline is tight is a bad idea: an unsatisfactory result gives you far less room than you expect.
What it costs to get it wrong in Brentwood
Local authorities can impose a financial penalty of up to £30,000 for a breach of these regulations. They can also arrange the remedial work themselves and recover the cost from the landlord. This is enforcement that actually happens rather than a theoretical maximum, and it is worth more than the inspection many times over.
We arrange the inspection, and we tell you before your certificate lapses so the renewal does not creep up on you. If the report comes back unsatisfactory you are under no obligation to use the same electrician for the remedial work.
Renting out property in Brentwood
Most enquiries here are sales-driven rather than tenancy-driven. Buyers of larger houses, and their solicitors, increasingly want to see a current electrical safety certificate before exchange, and the inspection is easier to schedule before the property goes on the market than during a chain.
What inspectors find in Brentwood rentals
Bigger houses mean more circuits, and more circuits mean a longer inspection than the two hours a small terrace takes. The findings on this stock cluster around what was added rather than what was original: garden offices and outbuildings fed by a supply that was never tested, hot tub circuits, EV chargers, and extension wiring joined into the existing installation without the whole circuit being reassessed. A property that has been extended twice quite often has three different generations of wiring meeting at one consumer unit.
As well as Brentwood itself, we regularly arrange work in Shenfield, Hutton, Ingatestone, Pilgrims Hatch and Warley. The billing authority is Brentwood Borough Council. The price follows the property rather than the postcode, so there is no surcharge for reaching any of them.
If you are weighing up whether you need one, read what landlords need to have in place, or check the areas we cover.
Get a fixed price for Brentwood
Tell us about the property and we will reply with a fixed price, with no call-out charge added afterwards and no obligation to proceed.
Brentwood: common questions
- When exactly does a Brentwood landlord need a new EICR?
- At intervals of no more than five years, and before a new tenancy starts if the existing report will not still be valid for that tenant. A report with time left on it carries over to a new tenancy, so you do not need a fresh inspection for every changeover. If your report specifies an interval shorter than five years, that shorter interval is the one that applies.
- Do I have to give the report to my tenants?
- Yes, and this is a duty in its own right rather than good practice. Existing tenants get a copy within 28 days of the inspection. A new tenant gets one before they take occupation. Anyone requesting to become a tenant gets one within 28 days of asking. Reports are issued digitally so you can forward them straight on.
- What if the report is unsatisfactory and I cannot get the work done in 28 days?
- The 28 day limit runs from the inspection, and it is not generous once you have arranged quotes and access. If the work genuinely cannot be completed in time, the practical answer is to start it and document that it is under way, because the regulations look at whether you took the required steps. The better answer is to book the inspection well before your deadline so the 28 days is not the binding constraint.
- My Brentwood house has been extended twice. Does that make the EICR more expensive?
- It can, because the price follows the number of circuits rather than the address. An extended house usually has more circuits than its original footprint suggests, and an inspector has to test all of them. Tell us the number of bedrooms and roughly how many times it has been extended when you ask for the quote, and the fixed price you get back will already account for it.
- Will the EICR cover my garden office and EV charger?
- Yes, and they are worth mentioning when you book. Anything permanently connected to the fixed wiring is in scope, including outbuilding supplies, garden offices and EV charge points. These are among the most common places a C2 turns up in Brentwood properties, usually where a submain was run without adequate protection or without the earthing arrangement being reconsidered.
- How much does an EICR cost in Brentwood?
- EICR costs depend on the size of the property and the number of circuits, so you get a fixed price before booking rather than an hourly rate. A standard domestic EICR on a two or three bedroom home is a single flat fee with no call-out charge on top. Send the property details through the quote form and you will get the price in writing.
- How often do landlords need an EICR?
- Landlords in England must have the electrical installations in rental properties inspected at least every 5 years, and at the start of a new tenancy. You must give the report to tenants within 28 days and to the local authority on request. We remind you before your electrical certificate expires so the renewal does not creep up on you.
- Do you carry out commercial EICRs?
- Yes. We arrange domestic and commercial work, from flats and houses through to shops, offices and commercial premises. Inspection intervals for commercial premises are usually shorter than domestic, and the electrician will advise the right interval for your electrical system when quoting.
- What happens if the report is unsatisfactory?
- An unsatisfactory result means at least one C1 or C2 item was found. The report explains what was found in plain English, the remedial electrical work is quoted separately, and the EICR certificate is re-issued once it is put right. You are under no obligation to use the same electrician for the repairs.