What electrical work can you legally do yourself in Wales?
Which household electrical jobs you can legally do yourself in Wales, which are notifiable under Part P, and where DIY causes problems at sale.
Some household electrical work is genuinely DIY-able. Some is notifiable under Part P of the building regulations, and doing it yourself without notification creates a problem that surfaces years later when a solicitor asks for certificates.
This is the practical picture, not a scare story — plenty of homeowners do minor work perfectly competently.
- Notifiable: new circuits, consumer unit work, most bathroom work
- Generally non-notifiable: like-for-like accessory replacement
- Notifiable work by a non-registered person needs building control
- Undocumented work commonly delays property sales
What is notifiable
Installing a new circuit, replacing or altering a consumer unit, and most work in a room containing a bath or shower are notifiable. A registered electrician self-certifies and notifies; anyone else must apply to building control before starting, and pay for the inspection.
What isn't
Swapping a like-for-like socket front, replacing a light fitting on an existing point, or replacing a damaged accessory is generally not notifiable — which is not the same as saying it is always safe to attempt. Isolation and testing still matter.
Why it bites at sale
Conveyancing enquiries ask about electrical work. Unnotified notifiable work means either a regularisation application or an indemnity policy, and both cause delay in a chain. An EICR often resolves the question quickly.
Common questions
Can I add a socket myself?
Extending an existing circuit in an ordinary room is generally not notifiable, but it should still be tested and certified to be evidenced.
What if previous owners did unnotified work?
An EICR gives you a documented current condition, which is usually what a buyer's solicitor actually wants.
Can you certify work someone else did?
We can inspect and test it and report on its condition; we cannot retrospectively certify installation we did not carry out.
Get a fixed price
Selling and worried about past DIY work? An EICR gives you a documented position before the enquiries land.