Short answer: a new-build does not need an EICR for its first 5 years — provided you hold the Electrical Installation Certificate (EIC) for the original installation. The 2020 Electrical Safety Standards Regulations say that where the electrical installation is new, the EIC counts in place of an EICR, and the next inspection is due 5 years from the date on the EIC (not from completion, not from your purchase, not from the first tenancy). If you cannot produce the EIC, the exemption does not apply and you need an EICR before you let. F & A Electrical (NICEIC registered, 9.32/10 from 242 reviews) carries out EICRs on new-build flats across North and East London from £140 labour-only, and most new-build reports take under two hours. Call 07407 627542 or WhatsApp.
The rule in one table
| Your situation | Do you need an EICR to let it? | Next inspection due |
|---|---|---|
| New-build, you hold the EIC, less than 5 years since the EIC date | No — give tenants a copy of the EIC instead | 5 years from the EIC date |
| New-build, EIC is more than 5 years old | Yes | Now, then every 5 years |
| New-build, no EIC (developer/solicitor never passed it on) | Yes — no certificate, no exemption | Now |
| Full rewire of an older property with an EIC | Same as new-build — EIC counts for 5 years | 5 years from the EIC |
| New kitchen / bathroom / extra circuit with a Minor Works or partial EIC | Yes — a partial certificate does not cover the whole installation | Per your existing EICR |
| “Off-plan” flat completed 2021–2022, first let now | Check the EIC date: many are already at or past 5 years | Likely now |
What an EIC is, and why the date matters
An Electrical Installation Certificate is the document a registered electrician issues when a complete new installation (or a full rewire) is finished and tested. It is the “birth certificate” of the wiring: circuit schedule, test results, the designer, installer and inspector’s signatures, and — the line that matters — the recommended date of next inspection. On a new dwelling that is normally 5 years (or 10 for owner-occupied, but the rental regulations override that at 5). An EICR is the periodic health check that follows. The two are explained side by side on our EIC vs EICR page.
The date trap in London is the gap between the EIC and the letting. Big E14, E2, E3 and N4 schemes are wired floor by floor, sometimes a year or more before completion; the EIC carries the date the sparks finished, not the day you got the keys. A “2022 new-build” bought at completion and let in 2023 can have an EIC dated 2021, which means a first EICR is due in 2026, not 2027. Look at the certificate, not the developer’s brochure.
You’ve never seen an EIC — what now
It happens constantly: the developer’s pack went to the first buyer’s solicitor, the flat has changed hands, and nobody can find the certificate. Three routes, in order:
- Ask the managing agent or developer. For a block, the M&E contractor’s certificates are usually held with the O&M manuals and the building’s handover file. The freeholder’s agent can often produce a copy within a week.
- Check the Part P notification. The installing firm should have notified building control through their scheme (NICEIC, NAPIT, etc.). The scheme can confirm a notification exists, though they will not always release the certificate itself to a subsequent owner.
- Get an EICR. If steps 1–2 fail, or you want to let inside a fortnight, an EICR on a new-build is quick (modern board, labelled circuits, accessible accessories), almost always satisfactory, and gives you your own 5-year document. From £140 labour-only. Our who can carry out an EICR page tells you what to expect from a proper one.
What we actually find on new-build EICRs
New does not mean perfect. On new-build reports we carry out in Tower Hamlets, Hackney, Haringey and Newham the same handful of observations come up:
- Missing or incomplete circuit labelling and no schedule left at the board — a C3, but it wastes the next electrician’s hour.
- Consumer unit not connected to the flat’s protective bonding because the plumber arrived after the electrician: a C2 where the water and heating pipes are metallic.
- Loose neutrals at the consumer unit from a rushed second fix — heat marks on the neutral bar, occasionally a C2.
- Kitchen appliance circuits altered by the tenant’s white-goods installer with no certificate — commonly an unfused spur.
- RCD test buttons that have never been pressed and stick; occasionally an RCD that fails the trip-time test outright — a C2 and a straightforward swap.
- Balcony and terrace sockets not on their own RCD, or IP-rated covers already cracked.
In a leasehold flat your report covers the flat from its consumer unit inwards; the risers and communal supplies are the freeholder’s inspection. Where that split causes trouble (a block earthing reading that fails your flat), our leasehold flat EICR guide explains what to do.
Prices for new-build EICRs in London (labour-only)
| Property | Price |
|---|---|
| New-build studio / 1-bed / 2-bed flat | from £140 |
| New-build 3-bed house or duplex | from £180 |
| Block booking — 4+ flats, one visit, arranged via the agent | £120 per flat |
| Fix for a C2 found on the day (bonding, RCD, loose termination) | from £108 |
| PAT testing of supplied appliances (furnished lets) | £5 per appliance |
Full price detail on the EICR cost guide. Since 1 May 2026 the civil penalty for letting without a valid certificate is up to £40,000 per breach under the Renters’ Rights Act — an EIC you cannot produce offers no defence.
Frequently asked questions
Does the EIC have to be given to the tenant like an EICR?
Yes. During the 5-year exemption the EIC stands in for the EICR, so the same duties apply: a copy to new tenants before they occupy, to existing tenants on request, and to the council within 7 days if asked. See what to do at a change of tenant.
My new-build has a 10-year NHBC warranty. Doesn’t that cover the electrics?
No. A structural warranty is not an electrical certificate and has no standing under the 2020 Regulations.
Can I use the developer’s building-control completion certificate instead?
No. Building control’s completion certificate confirms the dwelling met Building Regulations; the EIC is the specific electrical document the regulations name.
Does a new-build Airbnb or serviced apartment need an EICR?
Short lets that are not assured shorthold or assured tenancies sit outside the 2020 Regulations; the duty comes from general safety law instead. Our short-let EICR guide covers it.
Is a new-build EICR quicker than an old house?
Usually — 1.5 to 2 hours for a 2-bed flat against 2.5–3.5 for a Victorian house, because the board is modern, circuits are labelled and there are no hidden junction boxes.
We cover the new-build clusters in Poplar and the Isle of Dogs, Haggerston and the Regent’s Canal, Bow, Stratford, Tottenham Hale and Woodberry Down, plus every borough on our service areas page. Landlord EICRs from £140 on our landlord EICR and EICR London pages, renewals on the EICR renewal guide. Call 07407 627542 or 07500 721453.