Electrical inspections in Bournemouth

Inspecting a flat

If you own a flat, an inspection covers your installation: your consumer unit and every circuit it feeds. It does not cover the landings, the entry system, the lighting in the shared parts or the supply into the building — those belong to the building, and the freeholder or managing agent has them inspected separately.

That matters when someone asks for “the electrical certificate for the flat”. They almost always mean yours, but if they mean the building’s, it is not something you can arrange on your own.

The part of the report worth reading twice

Every report has a section recording its limitations: what was not inspected, and why. A board whose cover could not safely come off, circuits I was asked not to switch off, wiring buried where nobody can see it without lifting floors. Almost nobody reads it, and it is often the most useful page, because it tells you what the report cannot vouch for.

An inspection also checks a sample of the sockets, switches and fittings rather than every one, and the sample is agreed at the start. If there is a room or a circuit you are particularly concerned about, say so and it will be included.

If you are selling

Having one done before you market a property can help: you know what a buyer’s surveyor is likely to raise, and you can either put it right or allow for it in the price. It can also hand a buyer a list. Which of those matters more depends on the property, so it is worth talking through before you decide.

If you simply want to know

You do not need a reason. If the installation has never been checked, or different people have worked on it over the years, an inspection is a sensible way of finding out where you stand. The report itself recommends when the next one should be, so you are not left guessing.