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EICR visual inspection?

Dave Thomas
This came up in another forum question and when I looked, the NICEIC sell "visual inspection forms", but I'm struggling to see when or how these would be suitable or deemed sufficient as they apparently involve no testing whatsoever. the info I found was sketchy ( I didn't buy any!) but it looked as though you don't even take the cover off the board or do a Ze/polarity test?

I accept that in a well finished house with a high standard of decor (especially if they have just done it up and it's on the market) the customer might not want you taking loads of stuff apart and I it may be appropriate to list "limitations" on the report and get on with what you can, but: 

If you surely cannot state an installation is safe for use because the CU is modern, all the tails and earths look the right size and there's an RCD? Yes, knowing that there are no obvious risks of direct contact electric shock is a start, but surely you would at least need to do Ze and Zs for each circuit as well as bonding conductor continuity and RCD/RCBO trip times? Anyone know more about these, or does anyone do them?
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    That bit  I get: in fact in the past I have done a full periodic on a rental and when the customer has rung up 6 months later and told me the tenant is changing, I've gone and done a visual: made sure nobody has messed with it, no cracked sockets etc, but I've done Ze/Zs and RCD tests. Just because there are no obvious electric shock risks doesn't mean the tenant can't get a shock off a poorly wired metal light fitting changing a lamp. In theory I would spot that it had been changed and test it, but if you are doing a new "visual only" this won't happen. What I'm trying to understand is the circumstances under which such a test would be deemed satisfactory? Is it for unskilled persons doing a walk round before handover? You know the installation has an in date test so you're just looking for broken things?
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    That bit  I get: in fact in the past I have done a full periodic on a rental and when the customer has rung up 6 months later and told me the tenant is changing, I've gone and done a visual: made sure nobody has messed with it, no cracked sockets etc, but I've done Ze/Zs and RCD tests. Just because there are no obvious electric shock risks doesn't mean the tenant can't get a shock off a poorly wired metal light fitting changing a lamp. In theory I would spot that it had been changed and test it, but if you are doing a new "visual only" this won't happen. What I'm trying to understand is the circumstances under which such a test would be deemed satisfactory? Is it for unskilled persons doing a walk round before handover? You know the installation has an in date test so you're just looking for broken things?
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