Do you rent or are you involved in renting properties in and around the London borough of Hillingdon. Electrical Safety first has found that landlords are exposing themselves to significant financial risks, from fines and invalidated insurance, through not acting on their electrical safety obligations.

Landlords are also putting millions of uk private tenants at risk of serious accident or fire. PCC Electrical Services Ltd has clarified your obligations for electrical safety in rental properties and to help you keep your tenants safe.

Your responsibilities as a landlord

• That the electrical installation in a rented property is safe when tenants move in and maintained in a safe condition throughout its duration
• That a house in Multiple occupation (HMO) has a EICR carried out on the property every five years. If your property is not an HMO, at the moment you are not legally obliged to do this however changes are coming this year where it will become mandatory.
• You must ensure that any work carried out in the property is by competent and qualified inspectors under the new rules announced by the government, you could face tough financial penalties if you fail to comply with the new regulation which is part of the governments commitment to drive up standards in the sector
• That any appliance provided is safe and has at least the CE marking (which is the manufactures claim that it meets all the requirements of European law), to meet these requirements a landlord will need to regularly carry out basic safety checks to ensure that the electrical installation and appliances are safe and working
• PCC Electrical Services Ltd recommends that a visual inspection of the property is conducted between tenancies, making sure that your property has adequate RCD protection, always use a registered electrician and always carry out regular safety checks on the electrical appliances provided as part of the rental agreement.