Compliance · Fixed wire testing
Commercial EICRs & Fixed Wire Testing
Periodic inspection and testing to BS 7671 for offices, industrial units, retail, care and education — phased around your operation, coded honestly, and closed out by the same team.
Fixed wire testing — the periodic inspection that produces an Electrical Installation Condition Report — is how a business proves its electrical systems are safe. Under the Electricity at Work Regulations 1989 that proof isn't optional, and insurers and fire risk assessors ask for it by name.
LS Elec carries out commercial EICRs across the East of England and Midlands for single premises and multi-site portfolios. Inspection and testing is our core business: every circuit is tested properly, observations are coded against BS 7671 without drama or padding, and remedials are completed by our own qualified electricians so you're never handed a problem and left to find a second contractor.
We also carry out landlord and domestic EICRs — see our EICR Peterborough, Stamford and Spalding pages.
- NICEIC Approved Contractor — certification recognised industry-wide
- Phased testing so the site keeps operating
- C1 / C2 / C3 / FI coding with photographs
- Remedials priced from the report and completed in-house
- Portfolio schedules with renewal dates tracked
- Fixed quotations, usually within the hour
What's included
A proper test, not a walk-round
Visual inspection
Distribution boards, earthing and bonding, accessories and containment inspected for damage, deterioration and non-compliance with BS 7671.
Dead testing
Continuity of protective conductors, ring circuit continuity, insulation resistance and polarity on every circuit, with the power off.
Live testing
Earth fault loop impedance, prospective fault current and RCD operation — the tests that prove protection will actually operate.
Coding & photographs
Every observation coded C1, C2, C3 or FI, photographed and explained in plain English so you know what it means and what it costs.
Phased around operations
Testing scheduled by area and by time — evenings, weekends or one board at a time — so the business keeps trading.
Remedials & re-certification
Observations priced directly from the report, completed by our own electricians and re-tested to close the report out as satisfactory.
The case for testing
Why carry out fixed wire testing?
An Electrical Installation Condition Report is the only formal record that your wiring, boards and circuits are actually safe — and for commercial premises and rented property, it isn't optional.
It's how businesses evidence the law
The Electricity at Work Regulations 1989 require employers and duty-holders to keep electrical systems safe. Periodic inspection and testing is the accepted way to prove it — and for rented homes the 2020 Regulations make a five-yearly EICR mandatory.
Insurance depends on it
Most commercial policies require evidence of periodic inspection and testing. After a fire or injury, the first thing an insurer or the HSE asks for is your certificate.
Electrics degrade silently
Connections loosen, insulation breaks down and DIY additions accumulate. An EICR finds deterioration before it becomes shocks, outages or fires.
It protects people
Staff, tenants, pupils and residents rely on the installation every day. A proper inspection is the difference between assuming it's safe and knowing it is.
How it works on a live site
Tested without stopping the business
- 01
Site information
Number of boards and circuits, previous report if there is one, access and operating hours. Enough for a fixed quotation.
- 02
Phasing plan
We agree what gets isolated when, who needs telling, and how disruption is kept to a minimum.
- 03
Inspection & testing
Dead and live testing on every circuit, with observations photographed as we go.
- 04
Report & remedial quotation
The EICR, a plain-English summary and — if needed — a fixed price to put things right.
- 05
Close-out & schedule
Remedials completed, the installation re-certified, and the next test date tracked for you.
Common defects
What can fail an EICR?
A report is 'unsatisfactory' if it records any C1 (danger present) or C2 (potentially dangerous) observations — or an FI that needs further investigation. These are the defects we find most often:
No RCD protection
Sockets and circuits without RCD/RCBO protection are the most common failure in older installations — one fault and there's nothing to disconnect it fast enough.
Exposed live parts
Broken accessories, missing blanks in fuse boards or open junction boxes that leave live copper touchable. Made safe on the spot.
Damaged sockets & switches
Cracked faceplates, scorched outlets and loose fittings — small damage that exposes users to shock and fire risk.
Signs of overheating
Discoloured terminals, melted insulation or burning smells at the board point to loose or overloaded connections on their way to failure.
Inadequate earthing
Undersized or missing earthing conductors mean a fault could leave metalwork live instead of tripping the protection.
Missing bonding
Gas and water pipework without main protective bonding — routinely missing in pre-1980s properties and an automatic fail when required.
Incorrect polarity
Line and neutral reversed at an accessory, leaving equipment live when you'd expect it to be dead. Invisible without proper testing.
Poor DIY work
Chocolate-block joints in walls, wrong-size cable, unfused spurs and other 'handyman specials' — we find them, code them and put them right.
Found something on your report you don't understand — or been handed an unsatisfactory EICR by another firm? Send it over and we'll price the fix, no drama.
Before & after
What remedial work looks like — drag to compare
Typical transformations from unsatisfactory to certified. Every remedial job we do is tested, labelled and photographed.
BeforeAfter
Fuse box → modern consumer unit
A typical upgrade: rewirable fuses replaced with a metal consumer unit, RCBO-protected on every circuit.
BeforeAfter
Damaged socket → safe accessory
Heat-damaged accessories are a common C2. Replaced, tested and closed out the same visit.
BeforeAfter
Ceiling-void chaos → contained wiring
Commercial ceiling voids collect decades of abandoned cabling. We strip, contain and label properly.
FAQ
Fixed wire testing, answered straight
How often does a commercial premises need an EICR?
BS 7671 guidance is typically every five years for offices, shops and most commercial premises, with shorter intervals — often three years — for industrial units, commercial kitchens, swimming pools, caravan parks and other higher-risk environments. Your insurer, licence or fire risk assessment may set its own interval. We'll recommend the right cycle for each site and track the renewal date for you.
What's the difference between an EICR and fixed wire testing?
Nothing — they're the same inspection. 'Fixed wire testing' is the industry shorthand for periodic inspection and testing of the fixed installation; the Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR) is the document it produces.
How much does a commercial EICR cost?
It's priced per site from the number of distribution boards and circuits, the age and complexity of the installation and any out-of-hours requirement. Send us the site details — or the last report — and you'll have a fixed quotation, usually within the hour. Portfolios are priced per site on a rolling schedule.
How long does fixed wire testing take, and do we need to close?
A small office may take a day; larger premises are measured in boards and circuits rather than hours. Circuits have to be isolated to be tested, so we phase the work by area and by time — evenings, weekends or one board at a time — agreed in advance so the operation keeps running.
What happens if the report is unsatisfactory?
It's common on older installations. C1 and C2 observations, and any FI items, need remediating — in rented homes within 28 days. We quote the remedial works immediately from the report, complete them with our own electricians and issue certification confirming the installation is now satisfactory.
Can you carry out remedials from another company's report?
Yes. Send us the report and we'll price the remedials against the coded observations. You don't need to go back to the original inspector.
How often does a rented property need an EICR?
At least every five years, or sooner if the previous report says so. Since the Electrical Safety Standards (England) Regulations 2020, landlords must hold a satisfactory EICR for every tenancy, give tenants a copy within 28 days and supply it to the local authority on request. Fines run up to £30,000.
Are you NICEIC approved and insured?
Yes — LS Elec is an NICEIC Approved Contractor, and we carry full public liability insurance. Our work is regularly assessed, and certification is registered so it stands up to scrutiny from insurers, councils and solicitors.
Book fixed wire testing — one site or the whole estate
Tell us the number of boards and circuits, or send the last report, and we'll come back with a fixed price per site.
Request a quote
Tell us about the site — or the whole portfolio
One premises or fifty. Planned compliance, a project package or reactive cover. Send us the details and we'll come back with a fixed quotation, typically within the hour during business hours.
Call us
01733 639 090Email us
enquiries@lselec.co.ukOffice 8am – 8pm, every day
24/7 reactive call-outs for commercial customers