EICR no hopers? try this one.

This is not a rare or uncommon situation with knuckle scraping low life's ripping off honest decent people. 


I was  a prosecution witness against a registered electrician who visited a disabled person's home sat at his dining table and wrote out an EICR without carrying out any testing or even taking an tools or test equipment in to the house. 10 minutes later he was gone with £150. 


Despite his his conviction he is the man to go to in East London and Essex for shark landlords to get their EICRs.

How do we reconcile this dishonesty with the equally dishonest invention of unsatisfactory EICRs? It really does seem that strengthened regulation is necessary.

Not to be flippant, but actually plugging in a plug tester with three neons is all the testing that Metering Services do when they replace an electric meter.


The story in the original post needs some clarification, was a full EICR form completed? How much was paid?


If the customers were sold a “visual inspection” and charged accordingly then it is just possible that they got what they paid for.

The NICEIC sell branded report forms for “Visual inspections”

https://www.shop.niceic.com/cnicdvn18


so as I said the story does need some clarification as to what the customers paid for and how much they paid, as they may have got what they paid for.

Skip to the end if you've read it before
A woman brought a very limp parrot into the vets. The vet pulled out his stethoscope and listened. After a moment or two, the Vet shook his head sadly and said, "I'm so sorry madam, but Polly has passed away."

 

The distressed owner wailed, "Can you be sure? I mean, you haven't done any testing or anything. He might just be in a coma or something."

 

The vet rolled his eyes, shrugged,  and left the room returning  with beautiful black Labrador. As the bird's owner looked on in amazement, the dog stood on his hind legs, put his front paws on the examination table and sniffed the dead parrot from top to bottom. He then looked at the vet with sad eyes and shook his head.

 

The vet led the dog out but returned a few moments later with a cat. The cat jumped up and also sniffed delicately at the ex-bird. The cat sat back, shook its head, meowed and ran out of the room. The vet looked at the woman and said, "I'm sorry; like I said, your parrot is most definitely, 100% certifiably ...dead."

 

He then turned to his computer terminal, hit a few keys and produced a bill which he handed to the woman. The parrot's owner, still in shock, took the bill. "£100!" she cried. " -  just to tell me my bird is dead?!"

 

The vet shrugged. "If you'd accepted my opinion, it wolud have been £25, but  with the extra Lab test and the Cat Scan, what did you expect?"


Now Substitute test readings of Zs and IR for the cat scan, and looking in the loft and removing a few sockets for the Lab test, and the 3 neons for the stethoscope, and I think we are have an analogy that will allow customers to see the full value in the range of EICR test methodologies and results available from some parts at the shallow end of the , err, profession.

Mike

A few years ago someone I know was contacted by a company that had "taken over responsibility for the maintenance of her solar PV system, the original company having gone bust", and she was told that they would send someone over for a free annual inspection. Said person took one look at the inverter, showed her the steady green light and informed her that this indicated a fault and that the whole unit would need replacing. She asked me for a second opinion. The light was just the normal power on / ok indicator.

All evidence received with thanks. Several are providing it! Thanks.


David

I find no great surprises, sadly!

Long story, I used to have two stray ferrets that decided to come and live with us.


I took them to the vets and whilst I was waiting a woman came in crying and carrying a dead rabbit, the receptionist said to me she would let the rabbit go in first as it was dead and wouldn’t be in the surgery for long, adding that she could tell the woman the rabbit was dead, but she wanted an expert opinion.

Your guide to getting your electrics checked.


Visual Inspection

A visual inspection is a basic check to identify any visible signs of defects, damage or deterioration.

No circuit testing will be undertaken, so your electricity will likely remain on during the inspection.

The electrician will need to be given access to all of the rooms in your home. The report will typically take around 1 hour to complete depending on the size of the property.

Notes will be taken by the electrician as part of the visual inspection and a Visual Inspection Report (VIR) will be issued to the home owner at the end.

The Visual Inspection report will record a number of observations and recommendations and provide an overall summary of the condition of the installation.

Below is a check list of the things you can expect to be looked at during a visual inspection.

Consumer Unit (main fuse board) Sockets

Plugs

Light fittings

Light switches

Electrical cables or leads

Earthing and bonding

Extension leads

Kitchen safety

Bathroom safety

Signs of wear and tear

Visible signs of burning/scorching RCD protection around the home

https://www.niceic.com/www.niceic.com/media/PDF/FactSheet-Electrics-A4-4pp.pdf


 Without actually knowing what work was asked for and agreed as well as what was paid for, it’s inappropriate to start calling the first electrician a cowboy or the second one a sheriff.


The first electrician may have been more honest than the second one.