Being a landlord in 2026 comes with a long list of legal responsibilities, and electrical safety is one of the most heavily regulated. The fines for non-compliance are steep — up to £30,000 per breach — but beyond the financial risk, electrical faults in rental properties can seriously injure or kill tenants.

As landlord electricians in Rotherham, we work with landlords and letting agents across South Yorkshire every week. Here are the most common mistakes we see.

Not Having a Valid EICR

Since June 2020, every privately rented property in England must have a valid Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR) carried out at least every five years. This isn’t optional — it’s the law under the Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020.

Yet we still meet landlords who either don’t have an EICR at all, or have one that’s expired. Some assume that because the electrics “seem fine” and the tenant hasn’t complained, they don’t need one. That’s not how the regulations work. The EICR is a condition of legally letting the property, regardless of whether there’s a visible problem.

You must provide a copy of the report to existing tenants within 28 days, to new tenants before they move in, and to the local authority within 7 days if requested.

Ignoring C2 Findings

When an EICR identifies issues, they’re coded by severity. C1 means danger is present, C2 means potentially dangerous, and C3 means improvement is recommended. If the report contains any C1 or C2 codes, the overall result is unsatisfactory and you’re legally required to complete remedial work within 28 days (or sooner if the inspector specifies).

The mistake we see is landlords treating C2 findings as optional because the word “potentially” makes them sound less urgent. They’re not optional. C2 means the fault could become dangerous under certain conditions — and those conditions might be as simple as a tenant plugging in a faulty appliance or water getting into a junction box during heavy rain.

Once remedial work is done, you need a qualified electrician to confirm in writing that the issues have been resolved. We handle this as part of the remedial work — you’ll get updated documentation showing a satisfactory result.

Using Unqualified Electricians

The regulations require that EICRs and any remedial work are carried out by a “qualified and competent person.” In practice, this means a registered electrician — someone on an approved scheme like NAPIT, NICEIC, ELECSA, or similar.

An EICR from someone who isn’t registered may not be accepted by the local authority, your letting agent, or your insurance company. If the worst happens and there’s a fire or injury, and it turns out your electrical work was done by an unqualified person, your liability exposure is enormous.

Not Testing Between Tenancies

The five-year cycle is the legal minimum, but you should also carry out a visual inspection between tenancies. Outgoing tenants sometimes leave behind damage that isn’t immediately obvious — overloaded sockets, DIY wiring for extra TV points, removed smoke alarms, or damaged switch faceplates.

A quick inspection during the void period catches these issues before the next tenant moves in. It doesn’t need to be a full EICR — a visual check by a qualified electrician is usually sufficient and much cheaper.

No RCD Protection

RCDs (Residual Current Devices) are the single most important safety device in a domestic installation. They detect earth leakage faults — the kind that cause electrocution — and disconnect the supply within milliseconds.

Many older properties still have consumer units without RCD protection. This will automatically result in a C2 finding on an EICR, meaning the report will be unsatisfactory and the consumer unit will need upgrading. If your rental property has a rewirable fuse box or an old MCB board without RCDs, a consumer unit upgrade is inevitable — and the sooner you do it, the safer your tenants are.

Forgetting Smoke and CO Alarms

Since October 2022, the regulations require a carbon monoxide alarm in any room with a fixed combustion appliance (gas boiler, gas fire, oil burner) and a smoke alarm on every storey used as living accommodation. Alarms must be tested at the start of each tenancy.

The common mistake is fitting battery alarms and then never checking them. Tenants remove batteries when alarms chirp, and by the next tenancy the alarms are dead. Mains-wired, interconnected smoke alarms with sealed lithium backup batteries solve this problem permanently.

Not Keeping Records

You need to keep your EICR documentation for the duration of the tenancy plus at least two years. If a local authority requests it, you have seven days to produce it. If you can’t produce a valid report, you’re in breach regardless of whether the electrics are actually safe.

Keep digital copies as well as paper. We provide all our landlord clients with PDF copies of their reports by email, so there’s always a backup.

Need an EICR, remedial work, or a consumer unit upgrade for your rental property? We work with landlords and letting agents across Rotherham and South Yorkshire. Call 01709 645 115 or WhatsApp us.

MP Electrical — your local qualified electrician in Rotherham.