A limitation on an EICR is a part of the electrical installation that the inspector did not inspect or test, recorded on the report so that the reader knows what the “satisfactory” or “unsatisfactory” verdict does and does not cover. Every EICR has some — the form itself (BS 7671 Appendix 6, Model Form 5) has two boxes for them, and a report with none written in is a warning sign, not a good one. What matters for a London landlord, buyer or leaseholder is which kind of limitation it is, whether it was agreed before the inspection started, and whether it leaves enough of the installation inspected for the report to count under the Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020. This page explains the two types, what we exclude as standard, what we never exclude, and when a limited report is and is not valid. NICEIC registered, 9.32/10 from 242 reviews, EICRs across North and East London from £140 labour-only.
The two kinds of limitation
The report separates limitations into two boxes, and they mean different things.
Agreed limitations (Section D of the form, “Extent and limitations of inspection and testing”) are exclusions settled between the person ordering the report and the inspector before work starts — the scope of the job. Typical agreed limitations are: no inspection inside the distribution network operator’s cut-out or meter (that equipment belongs to UK Power Networks, not the owner); no lifting of floorboards, carpets or fitted flooring; no removal of fitted kitchen units, boxed-in pipework or plasterboard; a sample of accessories inspected rather than every one; no disconnection of hard-wired equipment such as boilers, cookers or alarm panels beyond a visual check at the isolator; and outbuildings or a detached garage on a separate supply excluded unless they are part of the let. The name of the person who agreed the limitations goes on the form. If nobody agreed them, they do not belong in this box.
Operational limitations (the second box in Section D) are things the inspector found on the day that stopped a test or inspection that was meant to happen: a locked room, a bedroom the tenant would not allow access to, a circuit that could not be isolated because a business or medical equipment was running on it, a fuse board that could not be de-energised without cutting a tenant’s freezer, an inaccessible loft hatch, or a consumer unit blocked behind a fitted wardrobe. These are recorded with the reason, and — crucially — they are not something the landlord chose. An operational limitation is what an inspector writes when a tenant refuses to let us into a room; it is the evidence trail that a landlord dealing with a tenant refusing access needs on the report itself.
What we exclude by default — and what we never exclude
These are our standard agreed limitations on a domestic EICR, quoted on every booking so that there is nothing to argue about afterwards.
| Item | Standard position | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Supplier’s cut-out, main fuse and meter | Agreed limitation — visual only | UKPN / supplier equipment; not the owner’s to open |
| Cables concealed in walls, floors, ceilings | Agreed limitation — not exposed | Condition inferred from test results (insulation resistance, continuity) rather than by opening the fabric |
| Accessories (sockets, switches) inspected | Minimum 10% sample per circuit; 100% on the final circuit if any defect is found in the sample | BS 7671 permits sampling; we widen the sample the moment a defect appears |
| Fixed appliances (boiler, cooker, shower, alarm panel) | Inspected to the point of connection; appliance itself not tested | Appliances are PAT / manufacturer scope, not the installation |
| Loft, under-floor and void wiring | Inspected where safely accessible via an existing hatch | No boarding or flooring lifted |
| Outbuildings, garages, garden offices | Included when on the same supply and part of the let; otherwise agreed limitation | See outbuilding EICRs |
| Consumer unit internals | Never limited — cover removed, every connection inspected, every protective device tested | The board is where most C1 and C2 findings are |
| Earthing and main bonding | Never limited — Ze, main earth, gas and water bonding verified | Missing bonding is the most common C2 in London flats |
| RCD tests on every RCD-protected circuit | Never limited | A single RCD that will not trip is a C2 on its own |
| Bathroom and kitchen circuits | Never limited | Highest-risk locations under Regulation 701 / the 2020 Regulations |
The last four rows are the difference between a real EICR and the £60–£90 “drive-by” reports advertised across London. A report that lists “consumer unit not opened” or “no RCD tests — tenant in occupation” as a limitation has not inspected the installation, and a council or a court will read it that way.
Is an EICR with limitations still valid?
Yes — provided the limitations are the normal agreed ones and the extent inspected is enough for the inspector to reach an honest overall assessment. The 2020 Regulations require the installation to be inspected and tested by a qualified person “to the extent and in the manner” set out in BS 7671; they do not require that every cable in the building is seen. A report that says “satisfactory” with the standard exclusions above is valid for the full five years and is accepted by every London borough’s private-sector housing team, by mortgage lenders and by buyers’ solicitors.
It stops being valid — in practice, it becomes an unsatisfactory or incomplete report — in three situations:
| Situation | Effect on the report | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Limitations so wide that the verdict is meaningless (board not opened, no testing, “visual only”) | Not an EICR under the Regulations; council will reject it | Commission a proper report — ours from £140 |
| A whole circuit or room excluded operationally (tenant refused a bedroom; kitchen circuit could not be isolated) | Report is issued with the operational limitation recorded; overall assessment may still be “satisfactory” for the inspected part, but the landlord’s duty for the uninspected part is not discharged | Re-attend for the excluded part once access is arranged — we do this at £108, credited within 60 days |
| Limitation used to hide a known defect (e.g. “loft not inspected” when the loft has a junction-box mess the inspector could see from the hatch) | Report is misleading; inspector’s registration is at risk; landlord’s “reasonable steps” defence fails | Get a second report; report the first inspector to their scheme |
The test a council enforcement officer applies is simple: could a competent person, reading this report, understand the condition of the installation the tenant actually lives with? If the answer is yes, the limitations are fine. If the limitations box is doing the work the inspection should have done, it is not.
How limitations interact with C1, C2, C3 and FI codes
A limitation is not a defect code and never changes the overall assessment on its own. What it can do is sit next to an FI (“further investigation required”) code: where the inspector saw enough to be concerned but not enough to classify, the item gets FI and the report is unsatisfactory until the investigation is done. A common London example is a ceiling rose with a heat-damaged flex where the inspector cannot see the joint above it without lifting a floorboard — FI, plus a limitation recording that the floor was not lifted. FI items are cleared by a second visit (from £108) and re-coded as C1, C2, C3 or no defect. The codes themselves are explained in what C1, C2 and C3 mean and what a C2 actually is.
One rule worth knowing: an operational limitation caused by the tenant does not stop us coding what we can see. If the tenant will not let us into the back bedroom but the socket on the landing outside it is scorched, that is a C2 on the report regardless.
What it costs — and when a limitation changes the price
| Report | Price (labour-only) |
|---|---|
| EICR — flat, up to 8 circuits, standard agreed limitations | from £140 |
| EICR — house, 9–12 circuits | from £180 |
| EICR — licensed HMO, 5+ bedrooms | from £300 — HMO EICRs |
| Return visit to clear an operational limitation or FI item | £108, credited against any remedial work booked within 60 days |
| Outbuilding on the same supply, inspected with the house | from £60 added |
| 100% accessory inspection instead of the sample (buyers’ surveys, disputes) | from £60 added on a flat, from £108 on a house |
| Remedial work for C1/C2 findings | from £108 — remedial cost guide |
Circuit count is the other thing that moves the price; how many circuits an EICR covers explains the bands and the full ladder is in the EICR cost guide. Minimum charge £108 (£90 + VAT); every price labour-only.
Frequently asked questions
What is an agreed limitation on an EICR?
An exclusion from the inspection agreed between the client and the inspector before the work starts and recorded in Section D of the report with the name of the person who agreed it. Standard examples are the supplier’s cut-out and meter, cables concealed in the building fabric, and fitted units that would have to be dismantled. An agreed limitation is part of the normal scope of a domestic EICR and does not make the report invalid.
What is an operational limitation on an EICR?
Something found on the day that stopped an inspection or test the inspector intended to do — a locked or refused room, a circuit that could not be switched off, a blocked consumer unit. It is recorded with the reason. Where the cause is a tenant refusing access, the operational limitation on the report is the landlord’s evidence that they took reasonable steps.
Can a landlord use an EICR that has limitations?
Yes, if the limitations are the standard agreed ones and the consumer unit, earthing, bonding, RCDs and the bathroom and kitchen circuits were all inspected and tested. A report whose limitations exclude the board or all testing is not a compliant report and a London council will not accept it for a licence or in response to a request under the 2020 Regulations.
Does an EICR with limitations still last five years?
The recommended interval is set by the inspector on the report and is normally five years for a rented home with a satisfactory outcome. Limitations do not shorten it. An unsatisfactory report, or one with FI items, does not start a five-year period at all until the remedial work or investigation is done and a satisfactory certificate is issued. See EICR renewal timing.
Why does my EICR say “no limitations”?
Be cautious. Every domestic installation has parts that cannot be inspected without dismantling the building, so an honest report always lists at least the concealed-cable and supplier-equipment exclusions. “None” usually means the form was filled in quickly. It is worth checking that the person who signed it holds the qualification described in who can carry out an EICR.
Who decides the limitations — me or the electrician?
Agreed limitations are set jointly before the inspection; we propose the standard set above and you can widen the scope (100% accessories, floors lifted where you have access) at the prices in the table. Operational limitations are decided by the inspector on the day and cannot be negotiated afterwards — but they can be cleared by a return visit.
EICRs across North and East London from £140 labour-only, with the limitations quoted in writing before we start. NICEIC registered, 9.32/10 from 242 reviews. See all areas we cover, or call 07407 627542 or 07500 721453.