NIC Approved Contractor or DI

[New2Game]

When NIC do assessment for App Contractor they check 5 jobs right? Do they also watch you complete a job or simply check jobs you have already done?
If opted for DI instead do they check 2 jobs instead of the 5?
Can someeone spread some light for me as their new website is pretty c**p

 

[nozspark]

I went for DI a couple of months ago, and yes they do only want to look at 2 jobs which represent the type of work that you do. Mine were a complete rewire inc. E7 and a bathroom refurb (electrics side). Passed with no probs.
I onlyy went DI because most of the work that I do at the moment is domestic, however I think that I might go for full approved next year (think of DI as a stepping stone if you like), but I would really like to know what the differences are re cost. I know that they want to assess 5 jobs showing full range of work and 1 of them needs to be in progress! Other than that "I think" that the assesment process is quite similar.

 

[New2Game]

Application Fee is £505 then £468 per year after that

 

[New2Game]

So do they not watch over you while you do a job? What type of questions do they ask you?

 

[nozspark]

As I said I went for DI and it was quite stratght forward. Firstly make sure you have all the paperwork available for him to look at, insurance, H&S policy, EIC's / MW for jobs, cal sheet for meters, cal prooving sheet, BS7671, EAWR, OGS, qualification proof, etc, etc - they sent me a list of what is needed + OSG, EAWR and some green cert pads after I applied.

Questions he might ask about are safe zones, disconnection times, max Zs, bathroom zones, RCD operation times (300mS/40mS)..... you do not have to know the answers, but you will need to show him where the answers are either in the OSG or BS7671.

Thngs he will probably ask you to show/proove:
Safe isolation procedure
And all other required tests on different circuits - he will ask you to verify Zs results (find relevant table in BS7671-don't try and remember)

He will aslo want to look at a sample of sockets/switches.

Make sure that you have used all the required stickers.

You have to do all the work, he will just observe.

REMEMBER...do not leave your cu open and walk away from it unless it is isolated by an external DP isolator (instant fail). Mine allowed me to as the property was vacant and we were the only ones there, but I still double checked it with him.

Like I said, for me it went very well. No observations at all, quite plesant couple of hours, which came as a surprise.

 

[New2Game]

You say pleasent few hours, how long did it take? Is it not a full day assessment?

 

[nozspark]

For my DI assesment, he came at 12 and was gone by 2:30 if I remember. The 2 jobs were only 5 mins apart. I think that they like them to be no more than 20 mins apart if I remember rightly.

 

[scousespark]

I would suggest you look for work with a local firm.

An assessor will expect you to know your stuff, and asking questions like 'Why can I only use T&E for domestic work?' and 'do I need to earth the armour on SWA?' would suggest you'll struggle. The best place to get experience is working alongside a spark, not jumping straight into self-employed work.

This is just friendly advice, not a pop at you. Good luck for whichever way you go forward.