Anyone ever seen such stupidity?

[conny]

Moved house last week, (rented), and got permission off landlord to change a light fitting.
Searched everywhere for the CU but couldn't find where the meter was. In desperation I opened this little 'door' high up on the landing wall, (it opened no more than 45º)!

Lo and behold, it was the electric meter cupboard! And here is the meter with the consumer unit to the right hand side.

Its a 9 way unit, no idea what make, with what appears to be a main switch RCD and 9 mcb's. Again, no idea what size each mcb is. Had to feel along turning each one off in turn and making a note of which controls what. Will be informing landlord tomorrow it needs altering but I am curious to know what you sparks would do if you were called to a fault and found a board like this?

 

[flameport]

Option A: Call landlord/owner and advise no repair is possible, and charge them for the callout.
Option B: Fetch wrecking tools and remove the wall or whatever in front of it, price increased substantially due to the extra work involved, reinstatement of decor and removal of rubbish to be completed by others.

 

[AndyPRK]

but the metre is in there? Are there 2 ?

 

[conny]

No Andy. The meter is just readable if you look up at 45 degrees and the consumer unit is on the right behind the plastered wall.
This is at the top of the stairs on the landing.

 

[Iggifer]

I have seen something very similar to this, albeit better implemented. Meter & CU fixed to a brick/block wall, then a stud wall battened off the wall. Hole in the plasterboard about 1mx2m, covered up by a framed map of the world

 

[cjard]

Upon selling her house, I said I'd help my mother in law Sort it. The tenants had left the place a bit of a tip. Final meter readings were one todo item. I searched everywhere for the meter, eventually a phone call elicited the vital info that it was in the (converted) cellar/basement, in the corner of the room a small cupboard (that I'd looked in), that if one stuck a head into the cupboard and looked round the corner behind the adjacent wall's wood paneling.. There was the meter. No idea where the fuse board was