Is an EICR a legal requirement when selling a house?

No. There is no legal obligation on a residential seller in England, Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland to provide an EICR. The legal requirement applies to landlords letting a property, who must have a valid EICR at least every five years.

Will a buyer's solicitor ask for electrical paperwork?

Almost always. The standard TA6 property information form asks whether electrical work has been carried out since 2005 and whether certificates exist. If you cannot produce an Electrical Installation Certificate or Building Regulations compliance notification for notifiable work, buyers commonly ask for an EICR or a price reduction.

How long is an EICR valid for?

Up to ten years for an owner-occupied domestic property, five years or at change of tenancy for a rented one, and shorter for some commercial premises. The inspecting electrician sets the recommended next inspection date on the report itself.

What happens if my EICR is unsatisfactory?

The report is coded 'unsatisfactory' if there are any C1, C2 or FI observations. You are not forced to act as an owner-occupier, but a buyer will see it. Remedial work followed by a satisfactory report or a Minor Works certificate for the items fixed is the cleanest outcome.

Compliance

Do I need an EICR to sell my house?

By Steve Green · Updated 6 August 2026 · 6 min read

No — an EICR is not legally required to sell a home in the UK. The five-yearly EICR duty applies to landlords, not sellers. But the TA6 property information form asks whether electrical work has been done since 2005 and whether certificates exist, and buyers' solicitors routinely request an EICR when that paperwork is missing. Getting one voluntarily is usually cheaper than the price reduction it prevents.

What the law actually says

The Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020 require landlords to hold a valid EICR, renewed at least every five years. There is no equivalent obligation on someone selling their own home. Selling a property with an old installation is not illegal.

What is a legal requirement is that notifiable electrical work carried out since January 2005 was either done by a registered competent person or signed off by building control. That is the gap most sales trip over.

Where sales actually get held up

TA6 question 4 — you must declare electrical work and whether you hold certificates.
A new consumer unit with no paperwork — a very common finding, and an obvious one to a surveyor.
An extension or loft conversion where the electrical side was never certified.
A homebuyer survey recommending "further investigation by a qualified electrician" — which almost always converts into a buyer requesting an EICR.
Cash-poor buyers using an unsatisfactory report as leverage on price.

When it is worth getting an EICR before you list

Situation	Get an EICR first?
House rewired in the last 10 years, certificates in hand	No
Consumer unit changed but no certificate	Yes
Original fuse box with rewireable fuses	Yes — expect it to be raised
Property was previously let	You should already have one
Probate or long-empty property	Yes
Extension or conversion with no Part P notification	Yes

What an EICR costs and how long it takes

For a typical three-bedroom house, allow around two to three hours on site with the power off for part of it. Our EICR cost guide for London breaks down current pricing by property size, and the EICR testing service page explains exactly what is inspected.

Understanding the codes on your report

Code	Meaning	Effect on the sale
C1	Danger present — immediate risk	Report is unsatisfactory. Fix before marketing.
C2	Potentially dangerous	Report is unsatisfactory. Buyers will ask for remedials.
C3	Improvement recommended	Report can still be satisfactory. No action required.
FI	Further investigation required	Report is unsatisfactory until investigated.

A report with only C3 observations is satisfactory — that is worth knowing, because C3 items are frequently misrepresented as failures.

If the report comes back unsatisfactory

You have three options: carry out the remedials and obtain a satisfactory report, disclose it and price accordingly, or — where the installation is genuinely at the end of its life — consider a rewire. Our comparison guide explains which of those three routes fits which set of findings, and how long a rewire takes if you go that way.

Frequently asked

Is an EICR a legal requirement when selling a house?: No. There is no legal obligation on a residential seller in England, Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland to provide an EICR. The legal requirement applies to landlords letting a property, who must have a valid EICR at least every five years.
Will a buyer's solicitor ask for electrical paperwork?: Almost always. The standard TA6 property information form asks whether electrical work has been carried out since 2005 and whether certificates exist. If you cannot produce an Electrical Installation Certificate or Building Regulations compliance notification for notifiable work, buyers commonly ask for an EICR or a price reduction.
How long is an EICR valid for?: Up to ten years for an owner-occupied domestic property, five years or at change of tenancy for a rented one, and shorter for some commercial premises. The inspecting electrician sets the recommended next inspection date on the report itself.
What happens if my EICR is unsatisfactory?: The report is coded 'unsatisfactory' if there are any C1, C2 or FI observations. You are not forced to act as an owner-occupier, but a buyer will see it. Remedial work followed by a satisfactory report or a Minor Works certificate for the items fixed is the cleanest outcome.

Need a straight answer about your own property?

Call 0203 576 6961 — answered by a real person, available 24/7 — or request a free written quote.