If you let a property in Bexhill on Sea, an EICR is not optional. It is a legal duty, and the council can fine you for getting it wrong. We carry out EICRs across the town, from one bedroom retirement flats near the seafront to family houses in Sidley, Little Common and Collington, and flats carved out of the big Edwardian villas on the Sackville side of town. We are based in St Leonards, 3.7 miles up the road, so a Bexhill inspection is a short drive rather than a call out from another county. We test the fixed wiring properly, write the report the same way every time, and tell you in plain English what has to be done and what does not.
What the law asks of Bexhill landlords
The Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020 set the rules. The fixed wiring in a rented home has to be inspected and tested at intervals of no more than five years. Existing tenants must get a copy of the report within 28 days. A new tenant must get it before they move in. If the council asks for it, you have seven days to hand it over, and in Bexhill on Sea that is Rother District Council. The fine for a breach was capped at £30,000 when the rules came in, and that ceiling has since risen to £40,000. If your last report is nearing five years old, book now rather than later.
What we actually check on the inspection
An EICR is a hands on test, not a walk round with a clipboard. We take the cover off the consumer unit, test the circuits dead and live, and write down real readings. We check the earthing and the main bonding to the incoming gas and water, insulation resistance on every circuit, the condition of any cable we can see, and whether the RCDs trip in time when we press them. Bexhill flats in converted houses often have circuits added over the years by different hands, so we trace what feeds what before we start. The power goes off for parts of the visit, so your tenants need to know we are coming.
C1, C2, C3 and FI, what the codes mean
Every fault we find gets a code, and the codes decide the result. C1 means danger is present and someone could be hurt now, so we make it safe before we leave the property. C2 means potentially dangerous. There is no immediate risk but it has to be put right. C3 means improvement recommended, and a C3 on its own does not fail anything. FI means further investigation is required. The report comes back either satisfactory or unsatisfactory. Any C1, C2 or FI makes it unsatisfactory. A report carrying only C3 items is still satisfactory, and you can deal with those when it suits you.
If your report comes back unsatisfactory
An unsatisfactory result is not a disaster. It is a list of jobs. We give you a written quote broken down item by item, so you can see what the law makes you do and what is simply worth doing. The regulations give you 28 days from the date of the report to sort the C1, C2 and FI items, or sooner if the report itself sets a shorter period. After that you need to give written confirmation of the work to your tenants and to the council. We carry out the remedial work ourselves and issue that confirmation, so you are not chasing two different trades for paperwork.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: How often does a rented home in Bexhill on Sea need an EICR?
A: At least once every five years. That is the maximum interval, not a target. The electrician writing the report can specify a shorter one if the installation warrants it, and if he does, that shorter date is the one you have to work to. The five years runs from the date of the inspection, not from the start of the tenancy, so a report you inherited when you bought the property still counts and still expires.
Q: I have new tenants moving into my Bexhill flat next month. When do they need the report?
A: Before they move in, not within 28 days. The 28 day rule applies to tenants already living in the property when a new report is done. A tenant starting a fresh tenancy has to be given a copy of the current report before occupation begins. If you use a letting agent in Bexhill, send it to them as soon as we issue it so it goes into the tenancy pack rather than being chased later.
Q: Does an EICR cover the appliances in the flat as well?
A: No. An EICR covers the fixed installation, which means the consumer unit, the cabling, the sockets, the switches and the fixed light fittings. Anything that plugs into a socket, such as a kettle, a fridge or a portable heater you supply with the let, is separate and is tested under a different regime. If you supply appliances with the property, keep that testing in mind as a separate job rather than assuming the EICR has caught it.
Q: My flat is in a converted house with the meters in a shared cupboard. Is that a problem?
A: It is common in Bexhill and it is manageable. We test the installation that belongs to your flat, which normally starts at your own consumer unit. Anything in the communal hallway, stair lighting or the landlord supply for the building usually belongs to the freeholder or the managing agent, so it sits outside your report. Where we cannot reach something because access is not yours to give, we record that as a limitation rather than guessing.