Folder of printed electrical certificates in plastic sleeves on a wooden desk

Paperwork after Exeter electrical work: what you get

8 min read
Explained
After electrical work you receive several documents that look alike but serve different purposes. This guide explains the installation certificate, the minor works certificate, the condition report and the building regulations compliance certificate, and how to store them for sale, insurance and letting.

Customers who have electrical work done in Exeter often receive a pile of documents that look similar and are named in ways that are hard to follow. An installation certificate, a minor works certificate, a condition report and a building regulations compliance certificate can all arrive after the same job, and each serves a different purpose. This guide explains what each document is for, what it should contain, how it links to the work and why it matters later when you sell, insure, let or simply need to know what has been done to your property.

Electrical Installation Certificate

An Electrical Installation Certificate is the document issued when a new installation or a substantial alteration is completed. It records the design of the work, the construction, the inspection and the testing, and it is signed by the person responsible for the design and by the person who carried out the installation. Where a new circuit or a new consumer unit is fitted, the certificate sets out the circuits affected and the results of the tests carried out on them.

The certificate should match the work described in the quote and the design. If the job included a new board and a rewire, the certificate should cover both, and it should identify the protective devices on each circuit. Check that the address, the date and the names of the people involved are correct, because a certificate with errors can cause delays later. The certificate is the main evidence that the new installation was tested and found to be safe at the time of completion.

Ask for the certificate before the final payment is made. Many electricians deliver it on completion, but some wait until the paperwork has been processed. Agree in writing when it will be provided. The guidance printed on the IET's model certificate forms says the person ordering the work should receive the original and the installer should keep a duplicate, and that someone who ordered the work but does not own the property should pass the certificate, or a full copy with its schedules, to the owner.

Minor Electrical Installation Works Certificate

A Minor Electrical Installation Works Certificate covers small jobs that do not involve a new circuit. Examples include replacing a socket, adding a light point to an existing circuit or changing a switch. It is a shorter document than the full installation certificate, and it records the work done, the tests on the affected part of the installation and the person responsible.

Minor works certificates are useful, but they have limits. They cover only the work described, and they do not show whether the rest of the installation is safe. If a minor job is carried out in a part of the house with older wiring, the certificate records that the new work was tested, but it does not give a complete picture of the wider system. A condition report is the document for that purpose.

Keep minor works certificates together in the house file. Over time a property can accumulate several of them, and the set shows what has been changed. A buyer or a surveyor will look at the set to understand the history of the installation, so a tidy collection is worth the effort.

Condition reports

A condition report, usually called an EICR, is an inspection of the existing installation. It is not a certificate for new work. It records the state of the installation at the time of the inspection, lists any observations with codes and gives an overall satisfactory or unsatisfactory outcome. The guide on what a condition report tells you explains how to read the codes and what the outcome means.

The distinction matters because a landlord has a legal duty to have a report carried out at regular intervals in the private rented sector. The Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector Regulations 2020 set the requirement for inspection and testing by a qualified person at intervals of no more than five years for the relevant tenancies. A condition report is the document that shows the duty has been met.

The Institution of Engineering and Technology's wiring regulations page describes the standard that a report is written against, which is useful when reading the document. File the report alongside the certificates for the property. Any remedial item it lists should have its own record showing the date and the person who carried out the work, so the file reads as a continuous history rather than a set of unconnected papers.

Building regulations compliance certificates

Some electrical work is notifiable under the building regulations, and where it is, a compliance certificate shows that it has been approved or self-certified. A registered installer may issue a certificate directly through their scheme, while in other cases the local building control body issues a completion certificate after its inspection. GOV.UK's page on using a competent person scheme says a registered installer will tell the local authority about the work and give the householder a certificate, that the certificate shows up in solicitors' searches when the home is sold, and links to the registers for checking an installer. The regulations set the timetable: under regulation 20 of the Building Regulations 2010, the person who carried out the work must give the occupier a copy of the certificate and notify building control within 30 days of completion, and in practice the scheme usually does both.

A compliance certificate is a different document from the electrical installation certificate, although the two often arrive together. The compliance certificate shows that the work has been notified or approved under the building regulations, while the installation certificate shows the technical test results. Both matter, and a buyer may ask for each separately.

If a project should have had a certificate and none was issued, raise it with the installer straight away. Work that was carried out without the required notification can be difficult to resolve later, and the guide on when Exeter electrical work needs building control explains the local route for regularising it.

Storing certificates

A simple system for storing paperwork makes a large difference. Keep the originals in a single folder or envelope, and scan a digital copy. Label each document with the date, the type and the installer's name. Keep a short list in the front of the folder that shows what has been done and when. That list is the first thing a new owner, a surveyor or an insurer will want to see.

Do not rely on the installer to keep the only copy. Businesses close, phone numbers change and email accounts are lost. Your own copy is the one you control. Where the work was done by an installer who is registered with a scheme, the scheme may hold a record, but you should still keep your own.

Keep the paperwork for the lifetime of the installation. A certificate for work done decades ago may still be needed when a new owner asks what was changed. If you are letting the property, keep copies of the certificates and reports available to tenants and to the council if asked.

Selling or letting requirements

When a property is sold, the seller is often asked for evidence of recent electrical work and any inspection. A complete set of certificates can smooth the process and reduce the number of questions raised during conveyancing. Missing or unclear paperwork can lead to a buyer's surveyor recommending further investigation, which adds time and cost.

Letting a property adds another layer. The private rented sector rules require the landlord to provide a copy of the most recent report to tenants and, where requested, to the council. The Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector Regulations 2020 are the source of that requirement, and they require a valid report at the start of a tenancy. A landlord who cannot produce the report is in a weaker position if a question arises.

Insurers also ask for paperwork after a claim involving electrical damage. The certificates and reports show the state of the installation before the event, and they help the insurer decide the cause of loss. Keep them where you can find them quickly.

What to ask for at the end of a job

At the end of any electrical job in your home, ask for the certificate that matches the work, a copy of the design or the schedule of work if one exists, and confirmation of any building regulations notification or completion. Ask for the names and registration details of the people involved and the date of the work. Store everything together and check that the details are accurate before the job is closed.

If the work includes a new consumer unit, the consumer unit upgrade service page explains the scope of testing and certification that should be provided. If you need a current condition report, the EICR certificates service covers the inspection and the report. For a quote covering the paperwork and the work together, use the get a quote page and ask each provider to list the certificates they will issue.

Good paperwork is part of the job, not an extra. A small amount of care at the end of the work protects the property's value and makes every later question easier to answer.