How much does an EICR cost in London?

An EICR (Electrical Installation Condition Report) costs £140 inc VAT for a 1-bed flat, £170 for a 2-bed, £200 for a 3-bed, and £250+ for 4-bed properties or licensed HMOs in London. F & A Electrical is NICEIC-approved and issues certificates the same day. Commercial EICRs are quoted per visit and typically £280–£600 inc VAT depending on circuit count.

How much does it cost to replace a fuse board in London?

A fuse board (consumer unit) replacement costs £550–£750 inc VAT for a straightforward swap to a modern 10-way dual-RCD board, £700–£900 inc VAT for an RCBO board with one breaker per circuit, and £800–£1,000 inc VAT for above-shop flats with shared supply or where supply tails need replacing. Every install includes the Electrical Installation Certificate, Part P notification and 6 years' NICEIC warranty.

How long does a house rewire take in London?

A 3-bed Victorian terrace rewire typically takes 2–3 weeks and costs £5,800–£7,500 inc VAT fixed quote. Larger 4-bed+ houses or heritage Georgian properties take 3–6 weeks and cost £10,000–£18,000+. F & A Electrical can stage rewires room-by-room so you don't have to move out, includes all new 18th-edition circuits, modern RCBO board, sockets, switches, bonding, hardwired smoke alarms, EIC, Part P notification and 6 years' NICEIC warranty.

How much does an EV charger installation cost in London?

A standard 7.4kW tethered EV charger install (Hypervolt, Ohme, EO, Wallbox, Tesla Gen 3) costs £950–£1,150 inc VAT fully fitted on off-street properties. Underground car park or sub-metered installs in flats run £1,400–£2,200 inc VAT depending on cable run. The OZEV/EVHS landlord grant of £350 is claimed where eligible. F & A Electrical installs all major brands across London.

Do I legally need an EICR for my rental property in London?

Yes. Under the Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020, every private rented home in England requires a satisfactory EICR every 5 years (annually for HMOs), with a copy given to the tenant within 28 days of inspection. Hackney runs borough-wide selective licensing requiring this for every let. Tower Hamlets, Islington and Southwark have additional and mandatory HMO licensing zones.

Are F & A Electrical NICEIC approved?

Yes — F & A Electrical is an NICEIC Approved Contractor, the UK's top electrical accreditation. Every job is certified, registered and notified to Building Control under Part P. We carry £5m public liability insurance, work to BS 7671 18th edition standards, and offer a 6-year NICEIC warranty on installation work. We have a 9.45/10 rating across 241 Checkatrade reviews and are members of Checkatrade since December 2018.

Do you offer a 24-hour emergency electrician service in London?

Yes — F & A Electrical operates a 24-hour emergency electrician service across all our London service areas. Emergency rate is £60+VAT per half-hour outside 8am–8pm Monday to Friday and £45+VAT per half-hour during normal hours. No call-out fee if we resolve your issue on the phone. We aim to be on site within one hour for urgent work. Call 07407 627542 or 07500 721453.

What areas of London does F & A Electrical cover?

F & A Electrical is based in Tottenham N15 and covers all of inner London including Hackney (Stoke Newington, Dalston, Hackney Central, Clapton, Hackney Wick), Islington (Highbury, Holloway, Angel, Canonbury), Camden, Tower Hamlets (Whitechapel, Brick Lane), Southwark (Bermondsey), Haringey and surrounding boroughs.

Why does my fuse board keep tripping?

Common causes of fuse board tripping include: an overloaded ring final circuit (too many appliances on one socket ring), a faulty appliance with damaged insulation causing earth leakage, water ingress into a bathroom or outdoor circuit, a failing RCD or RCBO, or a damaged kitchen circuit cable. F & A Electrical diagnoses and fixes tripping faults on a 24-hour callout basis. If an RCD trips repeatedly across multiple circuits, the consumer unit itself may need upgrading.

What does C1, C2 or C3 mean on an EICR?

On an EICR, C1 means 'Danger present' — immediate risk of injury, work must be done before the report is satisfactory. C2 means 'Potentially dangerous' — urgent remedial work required, still fails the EICR. C3 means 'Improvement recommended' — does not cause an unsatisfactory result on its own. FI means 'Further investigation required' — also fails the EICR. F & A Electrical can attend the same day to remedy C1 or C2 items and reissue a satisfactory cert for property sales or letting compliance.

What does C1, C2 and C3 mean on an EICR? Plain-English guide for landlords and homebuyers

Short answer: On an EICR (Electrical Installation Condition Report), C1 means “Danger present — risk of injury, immediate action required.” C2 means “Potentially dangerous — urgent remedial work required.” C3 means “Improvement recommended” and does not make the report unsatisfactory on its own. FI means “Further investigation required” and does make the report unsatisfactory. A report is only “satisfactory” if there are no C1, C2 or FI findings.

If you’re a landlord in London with a C1 or C2 on your EICR, you need to fix the issue and reissue the certificate within 28 days. If you’re a homebuyer who’s just been sent an EICR with C1 or C2 findings, you can usually push the seller to remedy before exchange, or negotiate a price reduction. This guide explains exactly what each code means, what it typically costs to fix, and what your options are.

EICR coding system at a glance

Code	Meaning	Pass or fail?	Action
C1	Danger present	FAIL	Make safe immediately — sometimes on the spot during inspection
C2	Potentially dangerous	FAIL	Remedy required to issue satisfactory report
C3	Improvement recommended	PASS	Optional — improves safety but not required
FI	Further investigation needed	FAIL	Re-inspect specific items to determine code

C1: Danger present — what it actually means

A C1 finding is something that could cause immediate injury or death. Examples we see regularly in London properties:

Bare conductors exposed (a damaged cable with live copper visible)
Broken socket with no faceplate, exposing terminals
Missing covers on consumer unit or junction box
Live parts accessible behind broken light switch
Earthing conductor disconnected at the main earth terminal
Class I appliance with damaged earth pin or no earth connection

An electrician finding a C1 should make the circuit safe on the spot — usually by isolating power to that part of the system — before completing the inspection. A C1 does not mean the whole property is unsafe to occupy. It usually means one specific item must be fixed within hours to days.

Typical cost to remedy C1: £50–£250 inc VAT depending on the fault. A broken socket replacement might be £85. A missing junction-box cover refit might be £50. A loose earth tail re-termination might be £120.

C2: Potentially dangerous — the most common reason for unsatisfactory EICRs

C2 is the workhorse failure code on London EICRs. The condition isn’t currently causing injury, but it could under foreseeable circumstances. Common C2 findings in pre-2000 London properties:

No RCD protection on socket circuits — required since 2008. Almost every consumer unit installed before 2008 fails this.
No supplementary bonding in bathroom — required to bond exposed metalwork to earth.
No earth on lighting circuit — common in 1960s/70s rewires that didn’t carry the earth conductor through.
Wylex/MEM rewireable fuses — pre-1992 consumer units without RCD protection on final circuits.
Damaged cable sheathing — old TRS or PVC cables degraded over time, especially where they pass over joists.
Loose tails at consumer unit — main supply tails not properly tightened, risk of overheating.
Sockets on kitchen worktop without RCD — high-risk location, must have additional protection.
Plastic consumer unit in escape route — under amendment 3 of the 17th edition, all CUs must be in non-combustible enclosure (metal).

Typical cost to remedy C2: ranges hugely:

Single bonding refit in bathroom: £85–£150
Earth pull-in on lighting circuit (per circuit): £120–£250
Tails replacement at CU: £150–£300
Full consumer unit replacement: £550–£950 inc VAT (the most common fix for multi-C2 reports)

If you have 3+ C2 items on the same consumer unit, almost always the cheapest solution is to fit a new modern dual-RCD or RCBO board, which clears most of the C2s in one job.

C3: Improvement recommended — does NOT make the report unsatisfactory

C3 is for items that comply with the regulations that were in force when the installation was done, but don’t meet today’s standards. Common C3 findings:

Old colour wiring (red/black instead of brown/blue) — fine if undamaged
Surface-mounted plastic conduit where flush would be tidier
Mixed cable types in same run (T&E and singles)
Older Wylex MCB consumer unit that still has RCD protection
Lack of arc fault detection device (AFDD) — only mandatory in some commercial settings

You do not need to fix C3 items to make your EICR satisfactory. But many landlords budget for them at the next rewire or board change so the property is future-proofed.

FI: Further investigation — the underrated fail code

FI (“further investigation required”) is given when the inspector cannot determine whether something is C1, C2 or C3 within the time allowed for the EICR. Common FI scenarios:

Hidden junction box — needs floorboard lifted to inspect
Cable behind plasterboard — needs intrusive inspection
Underground cable to outbuilding — needs ground-penetrating test
Suspected damp ingress in cable trunking — needs sampling

FI fails the EICR. You need to commission the further investigation (typically £150–£400) and then either remedy or sign off the item before a satisfactory report can be issued.

How EICRs work in London — landlord and conveyancing context

Three scenarios where EICR coding matters most:

1. Landlord renting a property in London

Under the Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020, you need a satisfactory EICR every 5 years (annually for licensed HMOs). If your EICR comes back unsatisfactory because of C1, C2 or FI items, you have 28 days to either complete the remedial work or formally arrange for it — then you must give the certified satisfactory report to your tenant within 28 days of completion.

Failure to comply can result in fines of up to £30,000. Hackney, Tower Hamlets and Southwark are particularly active enforcement boroughs.

2. Buying a property in London

If the seller’s EICR comes back with C1, C2 or FI items during your conveyancing, your solicitor will usually flag it. You have three options:

Push the seller to remedy and reissue before exchange (most common)
Negotiate a price reduction equal to the cost of fixing
Proceed and remedy yourself after completion (riskiest — you can’t always predict what the fix will cost)

F & A Electrical attends EICR-fail emergencies on a same-day basis across north and east London — we can usually remedy C1/C2 items within 24-48 hours and reissue a satisfactory cert in time for your exchange date.

3. Selling a property in London

You’re not legally required to have a current EICR to sell, but most buyers’ solicitors will ask for one or for confirmation that the wiring is safe. Getting an EICR done before listing the property and remedying anything that fails saves you negotiation pressure mid-conveyancing.

Frequently asked

How long is an EICR valid?
For domestic rental: 5 years. For HMOs: annually. For owner-occupied: as long as you want, but most insurers and conveyancers prefer one less than 10 years old.

Can I challenge a C1 or C2 finding?
Yes, but rarely successful. EICR codes are based on the Electricians Guidance Note 3 (NICEIC/ECA). If you think the inspector made a mistake, request a written explanation. You can commission a second EICR — but if two independent NICEIC contractors call the same item C2, it’s almost certainly C2.

How much should an EICR cost in London?
F & A Electrical EICR pricing: £140 inc VAT for a 1-bed flat, £170 for a 2-bed, £200 for a 3-bed, £250+ for 4-bed+ or licensed HMOs. Commercial EICRs are quoted per visit, typically £280–£600 depending on circuit count.

How fast can you remedy a C1 or C2?
Same-day attendance for solicitor-led EICR emergencies in north and east London. Most C1/C2 items remedied and satisfactory cert reissued within 24-48 hours.

Get a quote — EICR remedials London

If you’ve been hit with an unsatisfactory EICR and need it sorted, send us the PDF and a photo of the consumer unit:

Call: 07407 627542 or 07500 721453
Email: info@faelectrical.co.uk

F & A Electrical is a NICEIC-approved contractor based in Tottenham N15, covering Hackney, Islington, Camden, Tower Hamlets, Southwark and surrounding inner London boroughs. £5m public liability, 6 years’ NICEIC warranty on installation work.

What does C1, C2 and C3 mean on an EICR? Plain-English guide for London landlords and homebuyers