Commercial EICR in North West London

What does the law actually require of a business?

The Electricity at Work Regulations 1989 require every electrical system to be maintained, as may be necessary to prevent danger, so far as is reasonably practicable. That is regulation 4(2). It applies to employers and the self-employed in so far as the system is within their control, which is regulation 3. The regulations do not mention an EICR or set an interval. HSE's guidance, HSR25, says inspection and, where necessary, testing is an essential part of any preventive maintenance programme, and that the frequency is a matter for the dutyholder's judgement.

It adds that keeping records is not a legal requirement, but that without them a dutyholder cannot be certain the maintenance duty has been met. An EICR is that record. HSE also says BS 7671 is widely recognised, and that complying with it is likely to achieve compliance with the relevant parts of the 1989 Regulations. That is why an EICR to BS 7671 is the accepted way to evidence the duty.

How often should a commercial EICR be done?

For shops and offices, five years is the commonly cited maximum, and higher-risk premises need it more often. Allianz's guidance, updated 4 July 2025, gives five years as the maximum for commercial premises such as offices and shops and three years for industrial premises, with shorter intervals for specialist locations and for any installation in poor condition. Treat these figures as maximums, not targets. The interval that counts is the one written on your last report, because the inspector set it after seeing the installation.

• Offices, shops and similar premises: no longer than five years
• Industrial units and workshops: commonly three years
• Premises with heavy wear, damp, public access or a history of faults: as the inspector recommends, often sooner
• At a change of occupier, or before fitting out a unit: inspect first so you know what you are taking on

Landlord or tenant: who is responsible under the lease?

The duty falls on whoever controls the installation, and the lease usually decides who that is. On a full repairing lease of a whole shop, the tenant normally controls the wiring from the meter onwards, so the inspection is theirs to arrange. Where the landlord keeps control of the supply, the landlord's switchgear or the wiring to common parts, those parts are the landlord's. Read the repair and compliance clauses before you book.

Many leases require the tenant to keep the installation tested and to send the landlord a copy of each report. At the end of a lease, an unsatisfactory report can become a dilapidations item. If you are taking a new lease, ask for the last EICR before you sign, so any C1 or C2 work is not inherited.

Shop with a flat above: one visit, two reports

A parade shop with a flat over it usually needs two separate reports, one for each installation. The flat, if it is let to a tenant, falls under the Electrical Safety Standards Regulations 2020: a report at least every five years, a copy to the tenant, and remedial work within 28 days, with a maximum penalty of £40,000. The shop falls under the 1989 Regulations and the lease. On the parades around Kenton, Queensbury, Wealdstone and Burnt Oak, the flat and shop usually have separate meters but can share an intake cupboard or a rear stair.

We test both on the same visit, issue separate reports, and note anything that crosses between them, such as a flat circuit fed from the shop board. Where the flat is reached through the shop, Harrow's licensing fire safety guidance expects the flat's alarms to extend into the shop and be interlinked, which is worth checking at the same time.

How we test without closing your business

We plan the test so the premises can keep trading for most of the visit. Testing needs power off, but not all at once. Dead tests are done one circuit or one board at a time, and live tests are done with the power on. Before we attend, we ask what cannot go off: refrigeration, card terminals, alarm panels, servers, a clinic's equipment. We agree the order of work and the moments when each circuit will be isolated.

Our hours are Monday to Friday 8:00 to 18:00 and Saturday 9:00 to 16:30. Where a shop opens late or closes early on a given day, we start or finish around that. For a short full shutdown, such as testing the main switch, we agree the time with you in advance.

What a commercial report looks at that a domestic one does not

Commercial installations have more boards, more circuit types and more ways to go wrong. Three-phase supplies need balanced loads and correct phase labelling. Sub-mains feed boards in stockrooms, kitchens and upstairs offices. Shop fit-outs often leave old circuits live behind new partitions, and successive tenants add sockets without updating the circuit chart. We check that each board is labelled and that circuit charts match what is installed, because in a fault an unlabelled board slows down whoever is trying to isolate it.

Signs, display lighting and external fittings on a parade are exposed to weather and often show up as defects. Where parts of a building cannot be accessed, the report records them as limitations rather than passing over them silently.

Emergency lighting and fire alarms are separate

An EICR covers the fixed wiring, not the emergency lighting or the fire alarm system. Those are tested and certified under their own standards, BS 5266-1 for emergency lighting and BS 5839-1 for commercial fire alarms, usually alongside your fire risk assessment. We do not test or certify either. We will note whether the circuits feeding them are sound, and we can refer you to a specialist for the certificates themselves.

What affects the price?

The number of distribution boards and circuits, and whether the supply is single-phase or three-phase. A single-board hair salon is a short visit. A restaurant with a three-phase supply, a kitchen board, extraction and an upstairs office takes much longer. Access matters too: locked cupboards, stock stacked against boards and areas that can only be isolated at certain times all add time. A shop and flat on one visit is cheaper than two visits.

Certificates and defined jobs are a fixed price confirmed before we attend; repairs are charged by the hour, with the rate and an estimate confirmed before we attend.

Where we inspect commercial premises

We inspect shops, offices, clinics, cafes and small industrial units across Harrow, Kenton, Stanmore and Edgware, and in Wembley, Kingsbury, Queensbury, Burnt Oak, Colindale and the nearby areas. Much of the commercial stock here is parade shops built with flats above, plus offices around Harrow town centre and units on the industrial estates near Wembley and Colindale.

EICR Certificates by area: EICRs in Harrow, EICRs in Kenton, EICRs in Stanmore, EICRs in Edgware, EICRs in Bushey, EICRs in Colindale, EICRs in Hendon, EICRs in Mill Hill, EICRs in Northolt, EICRs in Northwood, EICRs in Pinner, EICRs in Ruislip and EICRs in Wembley.

Not sure which certificates apply? Use our landlord certificate checker.

What we will not do

We do not test or certify emergency lighting, fire alarm systems or lightning protection, and we do not carry out fire risk assessments. Large industrial installations, high-voltage switchgear and hazardous areas need a specialist contractor. We do not offer night or Sunday testing; where a business can only be isolated outside our hours, we will say so and suggest someone who can.

Why people trust us

• Inspection and testing by registered electricians, with every observation coded and explained
• A walk-in office on Kenton Lane, not a serviced address
• Anything immediately dangerous made safe on the day
• A time slot rather than a morning-or-afternoon window
• Work photographed before and after, and reported
• We tell you when you do not need something we sell

We are building a review profile under this name and would rather show you none than borrow someone else's. Ask us for references from landlords and we will put you in touch.

Official sources

• legislation.gov.uk: Electricity at Work Regulations 1989, regulation 4
• legislation.gov.uk: Electricity at Work Regulations 1989, regulation 3 (who the duties apply to)
• HSE: HSR25, The Electricity at Work Regulations 1989, guidance on regulations (3rd edition)
• Allianz: The importance of electrical inspections (updated 4 July 2025)
• Harrow Council: Selective licensing fire safety guidance (flats above commercial premises)

Last reviewed October 2026 by EliteShires Property Services.