Building control fees

[cannaefixit]

Hi
I think I've seen an old post on here by someone who'd convinced his local Building Control that Part P inspections of DIY work are at the councils expense not his?
Does anyone remember this? Has anyone else got their local authority to waive inspection and test charges?
My local authority charges £350 regardless of job (I'm told they don't get many takers )

 

[ColJack]

the electrical test and inspection for the final certificate should be at the LABC's expense, not the homeowner..

there was even a memo sent round to all LABC's saying this...

it's the "in progress" inspections that they charge for, and the "administrative" costs...

 

[cannaefixit]

Oh yes?
£352 for a Part P Building Notice (this is Wokingham District Council in Berkshire) and they want all work finished before they send SEC in to inspect and test (no first fix inspection!).
That's one h*** of an admin fee! They also give a heavy warning that SEC might disconnect your supply if they see anything dangerous(surely as any conscientious electrician should?)

The motive seems to be to just lose this area of responsibility by making people use Part P certified electricians. When I had my kitchen done a few months back, I thought about going down the DIY+building control certification route. The bloke from LABC at WDC said I would be the first!

The reason I'm thinking about it is I only have one socket ring, with everything on it (small flat). Since I put an RCBO on the ring (tested OK when kitchen was put in, proper test with meter) I've had a lot of nuisance trips caused by my aging washer/drier. I now want to put my fridge/freezer on a separate circuit and can't afford another spark.
It's a p*** easy job (I enrolled on a C & G 2381 course at the local tech, just out of interest, after the kitchen install and I'm exam-ready on that. Just have to wait for September when college restarts).
I can absolutely do the job properly and could never risk an electrician entering my nice new kitchen . I have all the time in the world to do the job carefully and neatly without destroying walls and ceilings and then walking away from a war-zone with a big fat cheque in my pocket.

I just want someone to spend 5 mins doing insulation/continuity, loop impedances , polarity and visual wiring check on a single outlet radial circuit and 5 mins writing a certificate. Tell me that costs £352.