UK Electrical Rule Updates: October 2026 Dates and Records

The Electricity at Work Regulations 1989 concern precautions against electrical injury in work activities in Great Britain. HSE's HSR25 guidance explains the duties on employers, the self-employed and employees, including the need for appropriate competence. These duties are separate from England's building notification rules below.

BS 7671 helps address relevant aspects of those duties, but using a form or naming an edition does not establish compliance. Have the qualified person assess the work and the installation; use the primary guidance for the applicable duties rather than treating this date summary as a technical procedure.

BS 7671 is the UK electrical installation standard, jointly published by the IET and BSI. It is a standard rather than legislation. Amendment 4, BS 7671:2018+A4:2026, was published on 15 April 2026. During the six-month transition, installers can use it or BS 7671:2018+A2:2022+A3:2024. On 15 October 2026, the earlier amendments are withdrawn and Amendment 4 must be used.

For work being planned now, check the applicable standard before fixing the design and quote. Have the current licensed publication available, review the changes relevant to the installation, and record the edition used in the design and certification paperwork. A qualification or downloaded form does not replace competence in the work being undertaken.

The changeover does not make an older installation unsafe simply because it was built to an earlier edition. Inspection findings and any proposed work need their own assessment. Use an Electrical Installation Certificate for the new work it covers; an EICR reports on the condition of an existing installation. Those pages provide free forms and explain their different uses.

Part P requires reasonable provision in the design and installation of electrical installations within its scope to protect people from fire or injury. England's Approved Document P explains the scope and ways to meet the requirement. Electrical safety and whether work needs notification are separate questions.

For notifiable work, a registered competent person can self-certify work covered by their scheme. Other routes are certification by a building control body or an eligible registered third-party certifier. Arrange the route before work starts; third-party certification is not something to assume can be booked afterwards. Check the scheme's scope or speak to building control about the proposed job. These England notification rules should not be applied to work in Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland without checking the relevant rules there.

For electrical work within Part P's scope in England, the notifiable categories are:

• Installing a new circuit
• Replacing a consumer unit
• Adding to or altering an existing circuit in a defined special location

A special location has defined boundaries; it does not mean an entire bathroom automatically. Check paragraph 2.5 of Approved Document P for the definition. Replacements, repairs and maintenance are not automatically notifiable because they are in a bathroom. Ask the scheme or building control to resolve uncertainty about the proposed work.

Choose the electrical certificate appropriate to the work, such as an Electrical Installation Certificate or Minor Electrical Installation Works Certificate, rather than choosing it solely from notification status. Keep electrical inspection/test paperwork separate from the Building Regulations compliance or completion certificate: producing an electrical form does not notify the work or issue the building certificate.

The Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR), formerly called the Periodic Inspection Report (PIR), documents the condition of an existing electrical installation following an inspection and test by a competent electrician. EICRs are required in several contexts:

England landlord checks: Private and social landlords must arrange inspection and testing of the installation by a qualified person, at least every five years or sooner if the report requires. Social landlords also need separate checks, at least every five years, of electrical equipment they provide under the tenancy.

October 2026 action for existing social tenancies: For tenancies granted before 1 December 2025, the rules applied from 1 May 2026, with the first installation and landlord-provided equipment checks required before 1 November 2026. The rules came into force on 1 November 2025 for the rollout covering tenancies granted after 1 December 2025. Review the dated reports and equipment records with the qualified person, arrange outstanding checks and access, and keep remedial confirmation. An EICR covers the installation; it does not replace the equipment record. The free EICR forms support recording the inspection, not performing it or proving compliance by themselves.

EICR codes: An EICR assigns a code to each observation:

• C1 (Danger present): Risk of injury: immediate remedial action required. An installation with a C1 observation cannot be issued a satisfactory EICR until the C1 is remedied.
• C2 (Potentially dangerous): Urgent remedial action required. The installation is not immediately dangerous but requires remediation promptly.
• C3 (Improvement recommended): An improvement is recommended; the observation does not itself require remedial work for the report to be satisfactory.
• FI (Further investigation required): The inspection has revealed something that requires further investigation before a conclusion can be reached.

C1 or C2 observations make the report unsatisfactory for continued use; FI requires further investigation. A C3 observation alone does not make the report unsatisfactory or require the landlord to carry out the recommended improvement.

Record actual findings: The qualified person's report gives the inspection outcome and identifies any investigative or remedial work. Keep the original report and the written confirmation of subsequent work together. A blank downloaded form supplies neither the inspection nor its findings.

England's rented-sector guidance requires landlords to keep the report and obtain written confirmation of required remedial or investigative work. That confirmation can take the form of an EIC, Minor Works certificate, satisfactory EICR or other appropriate electrical certification. The qualified person determines the document appropriate to the work.

Where an inspection leads to more work, describe the remedial scope separately in the quote. Keep the dated inspection, agreed scope and completion paperwork together, with the installation and equipment records distinguishable. An accepted quote records the commercial agreement; it is not the inspection outcome or completion evidence.