AFDD Q and A

It is an interesting point - I agree that 'as written' this is exactly what the standards imply - but it does imply a lack of joined up thinking about other things - one is a hidden assumption that only socket circuits suffer from faults that an AFDD may detect, and note even then they only detect something (if at all) once a load is plugged in !
This may be partly correct - circuits that loop through a string of many sockets contain far more joints and therefore potential failure points than a dedicated radial out to a point load like a shower or a cooker which may have no joints at all, except at the load itself and at the CU end.
In the UK of course the lighting circuits are equally complex, but the AFDD designs and rules come mostly from places where lighting and power circuits would normally be combined and there is a assumed 16A load. So in the UK a socket tacked on the 6A lighting circuit in the loft for the TV pre-amp would be AFDD exempt.

Now I'm not a great believer in AFDDs actually working, if your really think the wiring is a fire hazard then there are other things one can do. However, that is beside the point of this discussion, as here we are looking to the regulation for when to use them and that looks a bit wobbly as well.
I think the NICEIC advice is pragmatic and sensible, given the rules as they stand, but the background thinking has a few holes that perhaps ought to be looked into.
M.

It is an interesting point - I agree that 'as written' this is exactly what the standards imply - but it does imply a lack of joined up thinking about other things - one is a hidden assumption that only socket circuits suffer from faults that an AFDD may detect, and note even then they only detect something (if at all) once a load is plugged in !
This may be partly correct - circuits that loop through a string of many sockets contain far more joints and therefore potential failure points than a dedicated radial out to a point load like a shower or a cooker which may have no joints at all, except at the load itself and at the CU end.
In the UK of course the lighting circuits are equally complex, but the AFDD designs and rules come mostly from places where lighting and power circuits would normally be combined and there is a assumed 16A load. So in the UK a socket tacked on the 6A lighting circuit in the loft for the TV pre-amp would be AFDD exempt.

Now I'm not a great believer in AFDDs actually working, if your really think the wiring is a fire hazard then there are other things one can do. However, that is beside the point of this discussion, as here we are looking to the regulation for when to use them and that looks a bit wobbly as well.
I think the NICEIC advice is pragmatic and sensible, given the rules as they stand, but the background thinking has a few holes that perhaps ought to be looked into.
M.