Part P is part of the Buildings Regulations Standards. The idea behind building regulations is to make sure that the same standards are applied to every new building that is built. This includes:
- Fire Safety
- Sound Insulation
- Drainage
- Ventilation
- Electrical Safety
Since 2005 all electrical work on homes in England and Wales have had to comply with Part P building regulations standards. Even if the work was done by the home owner (DIY) needs to meet Part P standards.
The reason behind Part P standards is to keep everyone safe, weather that be your family living at home or work men carry out an extension, rewiring or fitting new fuze boxes etc.
Part P states:
“must ensure that reasonable provision has been made in the design and installation of the electrical installations in order to protect any persons who might use, maintain or alter the electrical installation of that dwelling from fire and injury, including electric shock.”
Who’s responsible of Part P?
In England & Wales the home owner / landlord is responsible by law to make sure that all electrical work conforms to Part P standards. If they don’t its a criminal offence – so be warned!
Most work performed by an electrician must be inspected by a Building Control Authority to make sure it complies with building regulations.
What electrical work has to be checked by the Building Regulations Department?
After some changes to Part P in April 2013, electrical work in a home or associated with its surroundings is notifiable to local building control if the work includes any of the following:
- Instillation of a new circuit low or high voltage
- The replacement of a fusebox
- Any alteration or addition to an existing circuit in a special location (bathroom, shower room, sauna, swimming pool)
Do I need to do anything? Or just leave it to the electrician?
- Check if the work is notifiable (rule of thumb if you’re having new things built or changing anything to do with water its notifiable) if it let your local authority know.
- Employ a Part P registered electrician – they will display the Part P logo on their website.
How do i tell the Buildings regulations people the work is under way?
Most councils do buildings regs submission through their website. Simply Google search the county where you live and the term “buildings regulations in Google” and you should get the right page then follow the instructions from there. If you want more information take a look at this handy guide written by Warwickshire & Coventry district council.
What are the benefits of using a registered electrician:
I’m a bit biased here because i am a registered electrician. The big benefit is safety registered electricians have to do a lot of training and exams to get registered and all the work they perform should be BS 7671 standard. This means you won’t have to deal with building control directly and once the electrician is finished you should get 2 documents:
- An electrical instillation certificate or a minor electrical works certificate that confirms all the work meets BS7671 standards.
- A building regulations compliance certificate and confirms you’re up to scratch with build regs.
If the work doesn’t meet building regulations standards then you have the right to complain. You can also get an insurance backed guarantee before the work is done and it its not done right you can claim it form the insurance. Or most electricians will come back and fix the job free of charge because we want our customers to come back in the future (remember every one can have an off day).
How to find an Electrician
Firstly read this post about how to find choose a good electrician its full of really useful hints and tips for choosing a good electrician.
Or you can go to the NICEIC site and search for electricians in your area.
If you’re in the Hertfordshire area give us a call here at Static Electrical Services in St.Albans. Were qualified, NICEIC registered and we offer free quotes and a 100% guarantee to get the job done right.
More Information
If you want to read more about building regulations there a really useful government guide here.
