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England: SI 2020/312, 5-Year Inspection by Qualified and Competent Person, Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory, C1 (Danger Present, Immediate Action); C2 (Potentially Dangerous, Remedial Required); C3 (Improvement Recommended, NOT Mandatory); FI (Further Investigation Required), Remedial Works Within 28 Days of Unsatisfactory Report, Supply to Tenant Before/At New Tenancy; to Existing Tenant Within 28 Days; to LHA Within 7 Days, Civil Penalty Up to £30,000 Per Breach, Scotland: Housing (Scotland) Act 2006 Repairing Standard, 5-Year EICR Mandatory, Wales: RHWA 2016, 5-Year EICR from 1 December 2023

EICR, Electrical Installation Condition Report Landlord Requirements UK 2026

EICR (Electrical Installation Condition Report) requirements for landlords: England (SI 2020/312), fixed electrical installation inspected and tested at least every 5 years; EICR observation codes: C1 (danger present, immediate action), C2 (potentially dangerous, remedial action required), C3 (improvement recommended, NOT mandatory; does not make report unsatisfactory), FI (further investigation required, makes report unsatisfactory); satisfactory report: no C1 or C2 observations; unsatisfactory report: any C1, C2 or unresolved FI; remedial works within 28 days (or shorter period specified in report); supply to new tenant before/at start of tenancy; to existing tenant within 28 days of written request; to local housing authority within 7 days of written request; civil penalty up to £30,000 per breach; emergency remedial action by LHA with cost recovery. Scotland: Housing (Scotland) Act 2006 Repairing Standard (ss.13-18), 5-year EICR mandatory for Scottish private rental properties from 1 March 2022; EICR required at each change of tenancy if more than 5 years old. Wales: Renting Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) (Wales) Regulations 2022, 5-year EICR from 1 December 2023 for new lets.

10 min readUpdated 7 June 2026Last reviewed: 2 September 2026EICRelectrical-safetyelectrical-installation-condition-reportSI-2020-312
Written and reviewed by· Founder, LetSafe UKLast reviewed: 2 September 2026

England (SI 2020/312), EICR requirements, observation codes and supply obligations

The Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020 (SI 2020/312) require landlords of residential tenancies in England (ASTs; company lets; student tenancies, excluding lodgers with resident landlords; social housing; long leases of 7+ years) to: have the fixed electrical installation inspected and tested at least every 5 years by a qualified and competent person (NICEIC-registered; ELECSA-registered; NAPIT-registered); obtain an EICR; carry out remedial works within 28 days where the report is unsatisfactory; supply the EICR to the new tenant before or at the start of a tenancy; to existing tenants within 28 days of a written request; to the LHA within 7 days of a written request; retain the EICR and supply a copy to the next inspector. Observation codes: C1 (danger present; immediate action; report unsatisfactory); C2 (potentially dangerous; remedial action required; report unsatisfactory); C3 (improvement recommended; NOT mandatory; does not make report unsatisfactory); FI (further investigation without delay; report unsatisfactory until resolved). Civil penalty for breach: up to £30,000 per breach.

Scotland and Wales, EICR obligations

Scotland, Repairing Standard (Housing (Scotland) Act 2006 ss.13-18): the Repairing Standard requires the electrical installation to be in reasonable repair and proper working order, with an electrical inspection (EICR) at least every 5 years. This has been part of the Repairing Standard since 1 December 2015 for new tenancies and 1 December 2016 for all tenancies (Housing (Scotland) Act 2014 s.22); 1 March 2022 was the deadline for interlinked smoke and heat alarms, not the first EICR. A tenant can refer a failure to comply to the First-tier Tribunal (Housing and Property Chamber) as a breach of the Repairing Standard. Wales, Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016 and the Renting Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) (Wales) Regulations 2022: electrical condition reports at least every 5 years, applying from 1 December 2022 for new occupation contracts and by 1 December 2023 for converted contracts; supply and remedial works obligations broadly mirror SI 2020/312 (England) requirements.

Primary sources

This page is drafted against the legislation below. Always check the current text of the law before acting.

Frequently asked questions

How often does a landlord in England need to get an EICR?+

In England (SI 2020/312), the fixed electrical installation must be inspected and tested at least every 5 years by a qualified and competent person. The EICR may specify a shorter period; the next inspection must occur by the date specified or within 5 years, whichever is sooner. An EICR is also required at the start of a new tenancy if the existing report is more than 5 years old or is unsatisfactory. The Regulations applied to new tenancies from 1 July 2020 and to all existing tenancies from 1 April 2021.

What do the EICR observation codes C1, C2, C3 and FI mean?+

C1, danger present: immediate risk of harm; inspector may disconnect immediately; immediate remedial action required; report is unsatisfactory. C2, potentially dangerous: risk of danger but not immediately life-threatening; remedial action required; report is unsatisfactory. C3, improvement recommended: departure from current BS 7671 standards but not dangerous; C3 does NOT make a report unsatisfactory and landlords are NOT required to carry out C3 works. FI, further investigation required without delay: inspector could not determine condition of something; report is unsatisfactory until investigation is completed.

What is the deadline for remedial works after an unsatisfactory EICR?+

In England, the landlord must carry out all remedial works or further investigation identified in an unsatisfactory EICR within 28 days of the inspection, or within a shorter period if the report specifies it (C1 observations typically require immediate action). After works are completed, the landlord must obtain written confirmation from the electrician that the works are done, and supply this to the tenant and LHA within the standard deadlines.

Templates recommended in this guide

Put this guide into practice, get the Landlord Annual Compliance Checklist from the LetSafe shop, the regulation-current pack that matches this guide.

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Landlord Annual Compliance Checklist

Annual walk-through of every compliance touchpoint: gas, electrical, EPC, smoke/CO, Right-to-Rent, deposit, licensing, database registration.

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