No Certificate provided for works done HELP!

[eviltoad]

Hi,

I moved into my first house in October and in December I employed an electrician to install a cooker ring as the house previously didn't have one and I wanted a dual fuel cooker at some point.

When asked if he was NICEIC he said no but was with one of the others (NAPIT I think). I should have taken his membership number and checked but didn't know to ask for it at the time and he was referred by a separate trades man I'd used. Yes, very naive and stupid, I know.

Well anyway, he installed the ring and cooker isolator and because the old consumer unit only had 4 trips? he installed a new unit.

He then produced a Domestic Electrical Installation Condition Report for the purpose of "New consumer unit". I took that to be the test/certificate information and all I would need for the future so filed it away and forgot all about it.

Today I've just had an electrician out to give a quote for installing a cooker.

He's advised that this is NOT the certificate and to check with the local Building Control to see if they have it on record. I've checked on line and there is nothing listed for this property.

I've read through the Building Control Guidance Note: Approved Document Part P - Electrical Safety in Dwelling - 2013, and I'm now crapping myself. Looks like he should have done a test for the cooker ring and one for the new consumer unit, provided me a certificate for the work and notified his 'body' to issue one to the local Building Control Office within 30days. That I could now be liable for a £5,000 prosecution and £50 per day since the work was done.

I've now checked the NAPIT, NICEIC, and competentpersons website for him and he's not listed on any. His website states they are Part-P compliant and lists 're-wiring' as one of the activities they conduct.

I've not been able to reach him on the advertised number this evening to get his side of things but I am getting really stressed over this to the point of panic. I would have thought he should have said before he started the work that he couldn't certify his work if that was the case or that I had to contact BC before work started.

I would really like this sorted out properly and don't fancy a prosecution. Could someone please advise what I should do to get this rectified, what are my options now that 4 months have passed since he came out.

Regards

Simon

 

[sparkiemike]

You won't get prosecuted so stop worrying about it.

If you can't get hold of the guy your only option is to speak to your building control department and see what there procedure is; i.e apply to Building Control to regularise the situation.

Or get the work re-done by a registered electrician

 

[ericmark]

If he states he is a member of a scheme then he is the one who is prosecuted so first step is to save the information on his web site.

As to documents I would guess there are 1000's of people who don't have the correct documents and I know of no prostitutions purely because the correct procedure has not been followed.

There are many due to sub standard work and because some one says they are a member of a scheme when they are not but these are to the guys doing the work not the guy asking for the work to be done.

I had a firm who was contracted to construct a wet room who ran off into the Welsh hills never to be found again. I contacted the LABC to say I was taking over the work. There was a problem with getting them to accept my signature but I did not have any charges levied against me and once I was accepted as competent I just did the work submitted the installation certificate and was sent a completion certificate in the post.

The work was for some one who was disabled but I did not have any problems.

You don't give a location and England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland (UK) all have different rules. I live in Wales.

 

[EFLImpudence]

I know of no prostitutions purely because the correct procedure has not been followed.

I thought a £5,000 fine was severe.

Sorry.

 

[eviltoad]

Thanks folks for the replies, quicker than I thought.

I'm East of Manchester and fall under Tameside. Any other info required just ask me...

I'm someone who likes to dot the i's and cross the t's hence the panic.

 

[eviltoad]

Just to add.

If I can't get him to do the test (for what ever reason) can I employ a different electrician to test the house and get a certificate (in BC notification) that way.

Or can an electrician not test someone else work?

Regards

Simon

 

[flameport]

If I can't get him to do the test (for what ever reason) can I employ a different electrician to test the house

If you already have a Domestic Electrical Installation Condition Report , then that is all the results of the tests that were done. Unless you have reason to believe they were incorrect, there is nothing to be gained by having someone else do them again.

and get a certificate (in BC notification) that way.

No - the work has already been done. The only way now would be via Building Control and obtaining a regularisation certificate. As this will likely cost £300 or more, the only ones to benefit will be your local BC.

The problems here are:
1. The EICR you were given by the electrician should have been an installation certificate. However the information on those two documents is substantially similar, and in terms of circuit test results there is no difference.
2. The work was not notified to building control. However as it is now months after the event, applying to BC directly is the only option.
3. The electrician told you there were a member of a scheme when they were not. An issue for Trading Standards or similar. Doesn't mean the work they did was unsafe - but then belonging to a scheme doesn't mean it was safe either.

 

[eviltoad]

Hi,

Why can I not get a different electrician to do a test? is there a legislative reason... Must be cheaper than regularisation?

To follow on from the problems:
1. Can I not get him the original electrician back out to fill in the correct forms or is it too late?
2. Is it too late for him to do the test again(?) and issue a certificate [assuming he is a scheme member]?
3. If they lied could I not try small claims court for regularisation costs. If they didnt lie then surely they owe me/BC a certificate?

 

[flameport]

You can get anyone to test / inspect the work at any time - but this is a totally separate thing from notification to building control.
Scheme members can only notify their own work, and only within a fairly short time after it has been done.

You could go to court over it - but that will just be waste of even more time and money.

The notification to building control simply states it complies with building regulations, which for the electrical part is just that it won't cause fire or injury. That is all.
Regularisation is the same process that applies in other situations where works are not notified beforehand, such as removing a wall, DIY window installations, extra toilets, relocating bathrooms/kitchens, loft conversions and all of the 1000s of other not notified works which happen all the time.

Since Part P was introduced 8 years ago, a tiny number of individuals have been prosecuted, but only because the work they did was blatantly unsafe and in some instances actually caused fires or killed people - the non-notification was just added in there as a secondary item.

The point of all this - you won't be prosecuted. In the real world, non-notification means virtually nothing, and spending any money or time on this will just be a huge waste.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

IF he can be shown to have claimed that he is registered (note that "His website states they are Part-P compliant" is not such a claim, only that his work complies with Part P, which it may well do) then he should have notified it.

So the OP could invoice him for the regularisation fee, and then if he does not pay that use the online claim service, which doesn't cost much.

 

[eviltoad]

To update:

I've just been in touch with the electrician. He said he did send off the notification for the certificate but he had cancelled his membership of Elecsa so that might be why it didnt come through.

He's said he will get a third party to come out and test/submit a certificate for the works.

Question:
1. Does this sound fishy?
2. Can the third party test/certify the works and will it be legit or is this all bogus?

Regards

Simon

 

[phatboy]

I would call Elecsa and ask them about him, see if he is being honest

 

[Spark123]

I know of no prostitutions purely because the correct procedure has not been followed.

I thought a £5,000 fine was severe.

Sorry.

For prostitution?