RCD Protection For Old Installations

Simon Barker: 
 

Chris Pearson: 
 

Sparkingchip: 
For the landlords EICRs in particular the government should have set out the expected minimum standards, which I think they thought they had done when they said the installations have to comply with the 18th Edition of the Wiring Regulations …

I don't think that they quite say that. In general terms, the law is not retrospective, so for example, my Alvis needs no direction indicators. It never has.

But the Wiring Regulations aren't law.  The new regulations for landlords are law, and specify the 18th edition.

What R.3 of ESSPRCR 2020 says is:

(1) A private landlord who grants or intends to grant a specified tenancy must—

(a) ensure that the electrical safety standards are met during any period when the residential premises are occupied under a specified tenancy;

And R.2 defines "electrical safety standards:

“electrical safety standards” means the standards for electrical installations in the eighteenth edition of the Wiring Regulations, published by the Institution of Engineering and Technology and the British Standards Institution as BS 7671:2018

I do not believe that this means that every installation in a privately rented property must comply in every respect with BS 7671:2018. If that were so, all the red and black cables would have to be replaced. Instead it means that the installation must be inspected and tested as set out in BS 7671:2018 and a decision made whether or not it is satisfactory and suitable for continued use.

This nuance may or may not appear before the Upper Tribunal and if it does, it will not be any time soon.

Simon Barker: 
 

Chris Pearson: 
 

Sparkingchip: 
For the landlords EICRs in particular the government should have set out the expected minimum standards, which I think they thought they had done when they said the installations have to comply with the 18th Edition of the Wiring Regulations …

I don't think that they quite say that. In general terms, the law is not retrospective, so for example, my Alvis needs no direction indicators. It never has.

But the Wiring Regulations aren't law.  The new regulations for landlords are law, and specify the 18th edition.

What R.3 of ESSPRCR 2020 says is:

(1) A private landlord who grants or intends to grant a specified tenancy must—

(a) ensure that the electrical safety standards are met during any period when the residential premises are occupied under a specified tenancy;

And R.2 defines "electrical safety standards:

“electrical safety standards” means the standards for electrical installations in the eighteenth edition of the Wiring Regulations, published by the Institution of Engineering and Technology and the British Standards Institution as BS 7671:2018

I do not believe that this means that every installation in a privately rented property must comply in every respect with BS 7671:2018. If that were so, all the red and black cables would have to be replaced. Instead it means that the installation must be inspected and tested as set out in BS 7671:2018 and a decision made whether or not it is satisfactory and suitable for continued use.

This nuance may or may not appear before the Upper Tribunal and if it does, it will not be any time soon.