Certification/training required for domestic electrical installations for a chartered engineer

Question

Hi all, 
 This is my first post on here, although I've been a member of the IET for a number of years. I have a question which may seem basic but the WWW doesn't give any clear advice. 
 I have a 1st class masters degree in electrical and electronic engineering, and also hold chartered engineer status with the IET (for 6 years now). Despite this, I know I am not permitted to carry out any domestic electrical installations. So my question is, what certification/training is required to allow me to carry out this work based on the qualifications that I already hold? Ideally, I'd also like to get on to a competent person scheme to allow self certification as well. 
 Many thanks in advance

mapj1 · Accepted Answer

The easiest legal route is to find someone in NAPIT, prepared to act as a 3rd party verifier for you for the very small fraction of domestic work that actually requires notification. With care, at least in England surprisingly little does if you plan that way, 
 The other route is to talk to your local builing control - not read the website, and explain what you intend to do. You may find, as I have in Hampshire, that they will actually accept a home rolled certificate from someone who is clearly not an amateur. 
 Mike

AJJewsbury · Answer

LBC will want a test certificate at the end, which I am not 'allowed' to generate. 
 
 Says who? I went down the LBC route with my own home renovations a few years ago - the council's electrician was pleasantly surprised I presented him with an EIC (made out by me with not a single C&G certificate to my name) and was happy to accept that, but would have signed it all off anyway based on his own I&T. At one point a lass in the office did suggest I find my own qualified electrician, but as soon as I pointed out I'd already paid them a couple of hundred quid BC notification fees for them to do the work, they soon relented. 
 In BS 7671 terms if you're do the work (design, install or I&T) you're required to sign the corresponding section of the certificate - the competency test is one and the same. There's no extra qualification needed to be allowed to sign your name. 
 - Andy.

Chris Pearson · Answer

Ben Evans said: I am very much hands on with my home renovations and regularly help friends out, but I'd like to be able to self certify my own work. I am completely competent, I just can't assign a test certificate and self certify. 
 Understood. I reckon that you need to do at least 3 notifiable pieces of work to make membership of a CPS worthwhile. 
 Let's make it clear - you can test and certify new work and you can test and report on an existing installation. What you cannot do is notify except as others have said, through the LA, which can be expensive.

Certification/training required for domestic electrical installations for a chartered engineer

Join us to get the best from IET EngX.

Community Rules & Guidelines