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Electrical DIY-ers
face new law
DIY-ers are
to be hit by new laws set to come into force
in January to combat unsafe electrical work.
From next year "significant" electrical work
will have to be carried out by a qualified and
registered electrician, the government has
confirmed.
If householders decide to do the work
themselves, it will have to be checked by
local authority building inspectors.
Phil Hope, the minister responsible for
building regulations, said the aim of the
new rules was to save lives.
Botched work
About 10
deaths each year are attributed to botched
electrical work and fires caused by badly
installed wiring and appliances.
Mr. Hope told BBC Radio 4's Today programme:
"This is all about saving lives and reducing
injuries from unsafe electrical work.
"Most small electrical jobs won't be covered
by the regulations. It won't apply to
repairs to power points or putting spurs
onto a circuit, unless you are working in
the kitchen or bathroom area or outdoors,
because electricity and water don't mix.
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News
New law spells end to DIY electrics
and cowboy electricians |
Cutting corners on
electrical work is plain dangerous - and from
1 January 2005 it'll be breaking the law too,
according to the UK's leading electrical
safety body, the NICEIC. The new electrical
safety law - entitled Part P - aims to tighten
up electrical safety in the home by clamping
down on cowboy electricians and on homeowners
doing DIY electrical work. The law will
require that all electrical work in homes be
carried out by a 'competent' person, such as
an electrician registered with the NICEIC.
Despite the fact that
faulty electrics result in 19 deaths and
over 2,000 non-fatal electric shock
accidents each year, until now electrical
installations have not been subject to
Building Regulations, so employing competent
contractors for all electrical work has been
left to the common sense of the homeowner.
"This new electrical
safety requirement is long overdue - we're
delighted that the law will now demand that
homeowners and occupants employ only
government-authorised electricians for
electrical work and don't embark on DIY
electrics," said Jim Speirs, director
general of the National Inspection Council
for Electrical Installation Contracting (NICEIC).
The electrical safety
law will be included in the Building
Regulations for England and Wales, and
requires any persons carrying out work on
fixed electrical installations in the home -
such as sockets, switches, fuse boxes and
ceiling fittings - to follow the fundamental
principles of BS 7671, the British Standard
for electrical installations.
New law spells end to
DIY electrics and cowboy electricians
Don't let cowboy
electricians put your life at risk - the
NICEIC already has a roll of Approved
Electrical Contractors, you can find one in
your area by visiting www.niceic.org.uk or
call the NICEIC on 0870 013 0381. Ends Notes
to editors: The NICEIC is an independent,
non-profit making body, with a register of
electrical contractors that meet its rules,
and Governmental controls on technical
standards. It is for this reason, and
because all electrical contractors are
periodically assessed by one of its 60 area
engineers, that the NICEIC symbol is one
that you can trust. NICEIC electrical
contractors are identified by the symbol
accompanying their advertisements in
directories and local papers, and on company
stationery and vehicles.
Further information on
Part P What is Part P?
Part P is a brand new part of the Building
Regulations for England and Wales. It comes
into effect on 1 January 2005, and brings
all electrical installation work in
dwellings into a 'controlled service' under
the Building Regulations. This means that,
for the first time, the technical standard
of electrical installation work in dwellings
(generally houses and flats) will be subject
to statutory requirements. These
requirements will apply not only to new
construction, but also to any alterations or
additions to existing installations,
including full or partial rewires.
What is the purpose of
Part P?
The law, which applies to electrical
installation work in dwellings and connected
gardens, greenhouses and outbuildings, is
expected to raise the competence of
electrical installers, and significantly
reduce the number of deaths, injuries and
fires caused by defective electrical
installations.
How will it be
enforced?
Part P will be enforced by Local Authorities
and failure to comply will be a legal
offence.
How will this affect
me?
When the time comes to sell your property,
your purchaser's solicitors will ask for
evidence that any electrical installation
carried out after 1 January 2005 complies
with the new Building Regulations. There
will be two ways to prove compliance:
1. A certificate
showing that the work has been done by a
government - authorised electrical
contractor, such as an NICEIC contractor.
2. A certificate from the local authority
saying that the installation has approval
under the Building Regulations.
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