EICR testing in Port Talbot
Port Talbot is dense terraced stock with a high proportion of long-held rentals, plus the Baglan and Sandfields estates and the seafront flats at Aberavon. That mix means one certificate rarely looks like the next, and the older Taibach and Margam properties in particular deserve a slower inspection than the price would suggest.
Book an EICR in Port Talbot
The housing stock in Port Talbot
Terraces here have often been rented continuously for decades, and continuous letting tends to produce continuous patching: an extra socket for a tenant, a light moved, a shower fitted between tenancies. Seafront flats bring their own pattern, with communal supplies, landlord circuits and salt corrosion on external metalwork.
On-street parking is tight through the terraced streets, so an hour of clear kerb near the property makes a real difference. Flats need agreement in advance for access to the intake cupboard and any communal board, which we can arrange with the managing agent.
What we typically find here
- Accumulated alterations from long tenancies with no certification
- Rewireable fuse boards still in service in unmodernised terraces
- Salt corrosion on external accessories near the seafront
- Undersized or unprotected cable to rear extensions
- Communal and landlord supplies in flats with unclear circuit labelling
Two to three hours for a terrace, longer for flats where communal supplies and landlord circuits have to be traced before testing starts.
C1, C2, C3 and FI in plain English
Something on the installation presents an immediate risk of injury, for example exposed live parts. We make it safe on the day where we can and it is reported straight away. A C1 means the report is unsatisfactory.
Not dangerous right now, but it could become so, for example missing earthing or bonding. A C2 also makes the report unsatisfactory and needs remedial work before a satisfactory report can be issued.
The installation is safe but does not meet the current standard, for example no RCD protection on a circuit that would need one today. A C3 on its own does not fail the report.
Something could not be fully assessed during the inspection and needs more work to establish whether it is a fault. An FI also results in an unsatisfactory report until it is resolved.
Any C1, C2 or FI makes the report unsatisfactory. If your Port Talbot property fails, you get an itemised written quote for the remedial work, and you are free to have that work done by anyone you choose.
How the visit runs
- 1Booking and accessWe agree a slot, including evenings and weekends, and confirm who is providing access to the consumer unit, intake position and every room.
- 2Visual inspectionAccessories, protective devices, bonding and cable condition are inspected before any instrument is used.
- 3Dead testingPower is off in stages while continuity, insulation resistance and polarity are tested circuit by circuit.
- 4Live testingEarth fault loop impedance and RCD operation are measured with the supply restored.
- 5Coding and reportEvery observation is coded C1, C2, C3 or FI, photographed, and written up in plain English alongside the schedule of test results.
- 6Remedials, if neededAnything that needs putting right is quoted in writing at a fixed price. You are free to use another electrician, and we will still verify and re-issue.
EICR questions from Port Talbot customers
The flat has a communal supply. Whose responsibility is that?
The report covers the installation you are responsible for, and we identify clearly on the report where a circuit belongs to the communal supply rather than the flat, so nobody pays twice or assumes the other party has it covered.
The house still has an old fuse board. Will it automatically fail?
Not automatically. Age alone is not a fault. What decides it is whether the protection provided is adequate for the circuits present, and rewireable boards frequently fall short on that, which is coded and explained rather than asserted.
Do you cover Baglan, Sandfields and Margam?
Yes, across SA12 and SA13, and Briton Ferry and Neath sit next door on the same run.
What is an EICR?
An Electrical Installation Condition Report is a formal inspection and test of the fixed wiring in a property. It records the condition of the installation against BS 7671 and codes anything that falls short.
How often does a rented property need one?
Domestic rented property in England and Wales is generally on a five-year cycle, with a copy provided to tenants. Check the current guidance from your local authority for your specific situation.
How long does an EICR take?
Most domestic properties take two to four hours depending on the number of circuits. HMOs and subdivided houses take longer because each supply is inspected separately.
Also covered nearby
Aberavon, Baglan, Sandfields, Taibach, Margam, Briton Ferry