What Happens During an EICR? | Gillingham Electrician’s Guide
You’ve been told you need an EICR — maybe your landlord has requested one, your insurance company has asked about the condition of your electrics, you’re buying or selling a property, or you’ve simply started wondering whether the wiring in your Gillingham home is safe. But nobody has explained what the inspection actually involves. How long does it take? What does the electrician do? Will they need to turn the power off? Do they pull sockets off the wall? And what happens if they find something wrong?
Not knowing what to expect puts people off booking an inspection they genuinely need. This guide walks through the entire EICR process from start to finish — what happens before, during, and after the inspection — so you know exactly what’s involved before the electrician arrives.
What Is an EICR?
An EICR — Electrical Installation Condition Report — is a formal inspection and testing process that assesses the safety and condition of the permanent electrical installation in your property. That means the fixed wiring, the consumer unit, every circuit, all sockets and switches, the earthing and bonding arrangements, and the connections between all of them. It doesn’t cover portable appliances like kettles and toasters — only the installation that’s built into the fabric of the building.
The purpose is straightforward — to identify any defects, deterioration, or non-compliance that could pose a safety risk, and to give you a clear, graded report on the condition of everything tested.
Before the Inspection
When you book an EICR, the electrician will ask a few basic questions about your property — the number of bedrooms, the approximate age of the building, whether you know when it was last rewired, and how many consumer units the property has. This helps them estimate the time needed and plan the visit accordingly.
Before the electrician arrives, there are a few things you can do to help the inspection run smoothly. Make sure the consumer unit is accessible — if it’s behind stored items in a cupboard, clear them away. Ensure every room is accessible, including the loft if there’s a hatch. Move furniture away from sockets if any are blocked behind heavy items. The electrician needs physical access to a sample of sockets, switches, and light fittings throughout the property, and anything that slows access down extends the inspection time.
You don’t need to be present for the entire inspection, but someone needs to be in the property to let the electrician in and be available for questions. The power will be turned off intermittently during testing — typically for short periods while individual circuits are tested — so be prepared for brief interruptions. If you work from home, save anything important before the inspection starts and expect occasional power breaks throughout.
The Inspection Process
The inspection follows a structured sequence that covers the entire installation systematically. Here’s what happens at each stage.
Consumer unit examination. The electrician starts at the consumer unit — the box where your main switch, circuit breakers, and RCDs are housed. They remove the cover to examine the internal wiring, check the condition of the connections, verify that the protective devices are appropriate for the circuits they serve, and note the type and age of the unit. If RCDs are fitted, they test the trip times to confirm they disconnect within the required milliseconds. The consumer unit tells an experienced electrician a great deal about the overall condition and history of the installation before they test a single circuit.
Circuit testing. Each circuit in the property is tested individually using specialist equipment. The electrician measures insulation resistance — this checks whether the cables have deteriorated, allowing current to leak where it shouldn’t. They test earth fault loop impedance — this verifies that the earthing system will operate the protective devices quickly enough to prevent harm in a fault condition. They check continuity of protective conductors — confirming that the earth path is intact from every socket and fitting back to the consumer unit. And they verify polarity — ensuring live, neutral, and earth are connected correctly at every point.
This stage requires the power to be switched off to individual circuits during testing. The electrician works through the circuits methodically, turning each one off for testing and back on once complete. You may lose power to a section of the house for ten to fifteen minutes at a time while each circuit is tested, but the entire property is rarely off simultaneously.
Earthing and bonding inspection. The electrician checks the main earthing arrangements — how your property’s electrical system connects to earth — and the bonding connections to gas pipes, water pipes, and any other metallic services entering the building. Adequate earthing and bonding is fundamental to electrical safety because it provides the path that allows protective devices to operate in a fault condition. Inadequate bonding is one of the most common defects found during EICRs, particularly in older Gillingham properties where the installation predates current bonding requirements or where modifications have been made without updating the bonding.
Visual inspection. Throughout the property, the electrician carries out a detailed visual inspection of every accessible part of the installation. They check sockets and switches for signs of damage, overheating, discolouration, or cracking. They examine visible cable runs for damage, incorrect installation, or deterioration. They open a sample of socket and switch faceplates to inspect the connections and wiring behind them. They check light fittings, junction boxes, and ceiling roses where accessible. In the loft, they inspect the cabling visible in the roof space — this often reveals the age and condition of the wiring more clearly than anywhere else in the property.
For properties across Gillingham’s older housing stock — the Victorian and Edwardian terraces near the High Street, the inter-war semis in Hempstead and Wigmore — the visual inspection often reveals wiring from previous decades that’s still in service. Rubber-sheathed cables, fabric-covered wiring, and outdated connection methods are common findings in properties that haven’t been rewired since original construction or since a partial update decades ago.
Bathroom and kitchen checks. These rooms receive specific attention because they have additional requirements under the wiring regulations. The electrician checks that fittings in bathrooms carry the correct IP ratings for their proximity to water sources, that bathroom circuits have RCD protection, and that kitchen circuits are adequate for the appliances they serve. Zone requirements in bathrooms — which dictate what type of fitting can be installed at different distances from baths and showers — are checked as part of the inspection.
How Long Does It Take?
For a standard two bedroom flat in Gillingham, an EICR typically takes one and a half to two hours. A three bedroom semi takes two to three hours. A four bedroom detached house takes three to four hours. Larger or more complex properties — those with multiple consumer units, outbuildings, or extensive installations — can take longer.
These timescales assume reasonable access to all parts of the installation. If the electrician has to spend time moving stored items to reach sockets or clearing access to the consumer unit, the inspection takes longer. The better prepared the property is before the visit, the more efficiently the inspection runs.
The Report
Once the inspection is complete, the electrician compiles the EICR report. This document records every observation and grades each one using a standardised coding system.
C1 — Danger Present. The most serious classification, indicating an immediate risk of injury. C1 defects require urgent attention and the electrician will typically make the situation safe before leaving the property. Examples include exposed live conductors or wiring presenting an immediate shock or fire risk. C1 findings are uncommon but serious.
C2 — Potentially Dangerous. The defect isn’t causing immediate danger but could become dangerous or is likely to deteriorate into a C1 if left unaddressed. C2 defects require remedial work as a priority. Examples include circuits without adequate earthing, damaged cables, or a consumer unit lacking RCD protection. C2 is the most common serious classification found during inspections across Gillingham.
C3 — Improvement Recommended. The installation doesn’t meet current regulations but isn’t dangerous. These are recommendations rather than requirements — the electrician is noting that upgrades could improve the installation but the existing arrangement isn’t unsafe. C3 observations alone don’t make the report unsatisfactory.
FI — Further Investigation Required. Something needs closer examination before it can be properly assessed. This might indicate a potential concealed fault that couldn’t be fully tested during the standard inspection.
The overall installation is classified as either Satisfactory or Unsatisfactory. Any C1 or C2 defect results in an unsatisfactory classification.
What Happens If the Report Is Unsatisfactory?
An unsatisfactory report means defects need addressing. The electrician will explain what’s been found, what needs fixing, and provide a quote for the remedial work. For minor issues — a missing bonding connection, a faulty RCD, or inadequate protection on a single circuit — the repair may be straightforward and affordable. For more widespread defects — deteriorated wiring across multiple circuits, a consumer unit that’s no longer fit for purpose, or lack of earthing throughout the installation — the remedial work may involve a partial rewire or a consumer unit upgrade.
For Gillingham landlords, an unsatisfactory EICR triggers a legal obligation to complete remedial work within 28 days. For homeowners, there’s no legal requirement but ignoring C1 or C2 defects is genuinely risky — both for your safety and your insurance position.
Having the same electrician carry out both the inspection and any remedial work makes practical sense. They already understand the installation, have identified the specific issues, and can plan the remedial work efficiently without duplicating the diagnostic process.
How Often Do You Need One?
Landlords are legally required to have an EICR every five years for rental properties. Homeowners are recommended to have one every ten years, or every five years for older properties where the installation may be approaching the end of its reliable working life. If you’ve never had one and your property is more than twenty-five years old, an EICR is the most reliable way to find out whether your wiring is safe or needs attention.
If you need an EICR at your Gillingham property, get in touch. We carry out thorough inspections across Gillingham and Medway with clear reporting, honest advice, and fair pricing for any remedial work needed.