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The short version
- An EICR is quoted per property, because the work is measured in circuits, not bedrooms.
- The inspection and any remedial work are two separate costs. Only the first can be quoted upfront.
- Circuit count, board age, access and whether the property is occupied move the figure most.
- A quote given without asking how many circuits you have is a guess, not a quote.
- In a rented property the landlord pays for the inspection, not the tenant.
An EICR is quoted per property, not from a price list, because the work is measured in circuits rather than bedrooms. What moves the figure most is how many circuits need testing, the age and type of the consumer unit, and how easily the installation can be reached. Remedial work is separate.
What you are actually paying for
An EICR is not a walk-round with a clipboard. The inspector is dead-testing and live-testing every circuit individually, and that is where the time goes.
- Continuity of protective conductors, circuit by circuit
- Insulation resistance testing, which requires the supply to be off
- Earth fault loop impedance and polarity checks at accessible points
- RCD operating times, tested rather than assumed
- Visual inspection of the board, accessories, cable routes and bonding
- Writing up every observation with a classification code and issuing the report
You are also paying for a qualified person and calibrated instruments. Test equipment has to be verified to be trusted, and the certificate is only worth what the signature on it is worth.
What moves the price up or down
Two flats on the same street can be quoted differently and both quotes be fair. These are the things that account for it.
This is why a quote given over the phone without a single question about your board is a guess. Anyone pricing the job properly asks how many circuits you have, what the consumer unit looks like, and whether anyone is living there.
Circuits, not bedrooms
Bedroom count is the proxy every online price table uses, and it is a poor one. A two-bedroom flat with a modern board and eight ways is a smaller job than a two-bedroom house with a garage supply, an outside socket and a sub-board feeding a loft conversion. The testing follows the circuits.
Access is the one thing you can change
Of everything on that list, access is the factor you control. A consumer unit boxed into a cupboard, sockets behind furniture, or a loft that cannot be reached all add time to the visit. Clearing the way to the board and to the accessible points before the inspector arrives is worth doing.
The inspection and the remedial work are two different costs
This is the part the price guides leave out, and it is the part that decides what you actually spend. The inspection is bounded and can be quoted in advance. What follows an unsatisfactory report cannot be, because nobody knows what is behind the wall until the testing is done.
Why the cheapest quote is not always the cheapest outcome
A rushed inspection is the expensive kind. Testing every circuit properly takes as long as it takes, and the two ways to shorten it both cost the landlord later.
- Under-coding — faults recorded as C3 that should have been C2, producing a satisfactory report that does not reflect the installation. The problem surfaces at the next inspection, or sooner.
- Over-coding — everything dated marked as a defect, generating remedial work that was never actually needed.
Both are more common where the inspection is priced as a loss leader and the money is expected to come from the remedial work that follows.
Ask whether the person quoting also does the remedial work, and how that is priced. It is a fair arrangement and usually the practical one, but you want it stated before the inspection, not after.
How to compare quotes properly
Three questions separate a real quote from a number picked to win a phone call.
- How many circuits are you pricing for? If nobody asked, nobody knows.
- Is the report itself included, or issued separately? It should be included.
- How is remedial work quoted, and is a re-test charged again? Get it in writing before the inspection.
If you are scheduling more than one property, the picture changes slightly. Inspection dates rarely line up across a portfolio, since each one runs from its own last report rather than from a shared date, and grouping several in the same area into one visit is usually the practical saving rather than anything on the quote itself.
We price EICRs per property after asking those questions, and we carry out the inspection and any remedial work ourselves, so a fail does not become a second contractor's problem. If you are weighing up quotes and want a straight answer on what your property needs, call 07727 619854.
If you are holding a report already and are not sure which observations are urgent, our post on what the codes actually mean covers C1, C2, C3 and FI, and which of them fail a report.
Frequently asked questions
The remedied items are re-tested and you are issued paperwork confirming the faults are cleared. A full second inspection is not usually needed, since only the affected circuits and accessories have changed.
The inspection itself costs the same either way — it is the same work whatever the outcome. What changes is that remedial work follows, and that is quoted separately once the observations are known.
The landlord. It is the landlord's legal duty under the Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020, and the tenant is entitled to a copy of the report within 28 days of the inspection.
Yes, and it usually is. Insulation resistance testing needs the supply off for periods, so it takes coordination and a bit longer. An empty property between tenancies is the easiest time to do it.
A visual inspection is not an EICR and will not satisfy the landlord duty. The report requires the circuits to actually be tested with calibrated instruments, not just looked at.