Landlords have three main reasons to be concerned about electrical wiring and appliances in their properties; compliance, insurance and property values. Landlords who don’t appoint management agents often fall down on compliance while those that do often lose value due to poor maintenance. Letting agents have little interest in your property’s resale value and by adding a premium to all maintenance expenses, they sometimes deter proper investment.

Ultimately, when anything goes amiss with the compliance, insurance or maintenance conditions, it is the landlord who eventually pays. Therefore, whether the property is “managed” or not, all landlords need to pay attention to property maintenance – and among the leading concerns are the electrics.

Landlord liabilities

A landlord’s legal responsibilities are complex and ever-changing. As well as general electrical safety checks – which you should perform at least every five years and before each tenant moves in – there are regulations about appliances (for example PAT testing), smoke alarms and energy efficiency. Housing regulations and tenancy contracts may add additional responsibilities.

Insurance is another serious concern. The small print almost always deems your insurance null and void unless you can prove that the property has been maintained to a professional standard. The only way you can do that is to maintain a record of professional property inspections and remediation.

Thirdly, to maintain the value of the property you must not only stay on top of its upkeep but also keep up with today’s improved housing standards. That means you need to set aside a budget for issues such as replacing fuse boxes with circuit breakers or old back boilers with condensers and heat exchangers.

Our electrical services for landlords

Regular electrical inspections should be your first priority for all the reasons above. Our experienced and fully accredited engineers will help you document your full compliance with statutory, insurance and contractual maintenance conditions, and help you prioritise remediation works and property upgrades to give you the best possible return on your investment.