Landlord EICR Requirements England: What the 2020 Regulations Demand

A private landlord with a specified tenancy in England must have the fixed electrical installation in that property inspected and tested at least every five years. That obligation comes from the Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020 (SI 2020/312), which took effect on 1 June 2020.

Which Properties Are Covered

SI 2020/312 applies to any "specified tenancy" — an assured shorthold tenancy, a periodic tenancy, a licence to occupy, or a company let where the occupier lives in the property as their main residence. Since the Renters' Rights Act 2025 converted all remaining fixed-term ASTs into periodic tenancies from 1 May 2026, the rules now attach to every standard private rental tenancy in England.

Several arrangements fall outside scope: resident landlords who share a kitchen or bathroom with a lodger, long leases of seven years or more, student halls managed by universities, and care homes or hospitals.

The Five-Year Inspection Cycle

Landlords must have a qualified person carry out an Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR) at intervals of no more than five years — or sooner if the inspector specifies a shorter period on the report. The clock starts from the date of the previous inspection, not the date the tenancy began.

A valid EICR from the previous owner or from a recent full rewire (documented by an Electrical Installation Certificate) counts toward the five-year cycle. A change of tenant mid-cycle does not trigger a fresh inspection; the landlord supplies the existing valid report to the incoming tenant before they move in.

What Happens After the Inspection

If the EICR comes back satisfactory, the landlord files it and waits for the next cycle. If it comes back unsatisfactory — flagged by a C1, C2, or FI observation code — the landlord has 28 days, or any shorter period specified in the report, to complete the required remedial work and obtain written confirmation from the electrician.

A landlord is not in breach if they can show they took all reasonable steps to comply, including where legitimate practical constraints prevent completion within that period.

Copies of the report must go to existing tenants within 28 days of the inspection, to new tenants before they move in, and to the local council within seven days of a written request.

Penalties for Non-Compliance

Local housing authorities enforce SI 2020/312 through remedial notices, remedial action if a landlord fails to comply with a notice, and civil financial penalties of up to £40,000 per breach (raised from £30,000 by SI 2025/1043). Separate penalties can be imposed for each distinct breach — failing to inspect, failing to remediate, and failing to supply reports are all treated independently.

Keeping Track of It All

Between the five-year inspection cycle, the 28-day report distribution deadline, the 28-day remedial window, and the seven-day council response obligation, there are at least four separate clocks a landlord needs to track for a single property. Our Electrical Safety (EICR) Compliance Guide brings every deadline, code definition, and distribution rule into one step-by-step workflow designed for self-managing landlords in England.

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