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One question I am often asked is how much electrical work I am permitted to undertake as a handyman – or whether it is safe and legal for me to undertake any electrical work at all!
If you are thinking of booking a handyman and your job list includes some minor electrical work, then this post is designed to help you understand where that line falls.
If in doubt, get an electrician
It’s important to stress right up front, that where you have any doubt over your electrical job, you should consult a qualified electrician. A qualified electrician is someone who has completed at least a Level 3 technical certificate and an NVQ or a Level 3 Diploma. This usually takes around 3-4 years as an apprentice (there are also some other, less common routes). With additional industry experience, an electrician can also be granted “Approved” status by the Joint Industry Board (JIB).
When you use a qualified electrician, you can (usually!) be assured of the competence and experience of the person undertaking the work, which may help put your mind at ease. There is also another reason to use a qualified electrician: They can provide you with notification and certification for the work they have done.
Notifiable electrical work
Under UK law, certain electrical work (called notifiable electrical work) must be notified to your local building control. It must also pass inspection and testing to ensure that it has been done correctly and is safe. This testing can be done by a qualified electrician (usually the person who did the work), who will then issue a certificate for it.
Where the work has been done by someone other than a qualified electrician, you will need to go through your local building control in order to have this work certified and signed off.
It is important that all notifiable electrical work is both notified and signed off – failure to do so could invalidate your home insurance, not to mention put you at increased risk.
So what is notifiable work? It is simply:
- The installation of a new circuit
- The replacement of a consumer unit
- The addition or alteration to existing circuits around showers and baths
For a detailed description of notifiable electrical work, read the UK Government’s own guidelines (Part P), page 6-7.
Non-notifiable electrical work
All other work is non-notifiable, meaning it doesn’t have to be notified to building control, or receive a certificate of completion.
Remember though: Even if your work is non-notifiable, you may still want to get it done by a qualified electrician for peace of mind.
Sometimes, however, it can be hard to find an electrician willing to book a very small or minor job, or the cost simply doesn’t make sense. Jobs like this can include:
- Replacing a broken light fitting or switch
- Moving or adding a socket
- Rewiring a plug or lamp
- Fitting a doorbell or other low voltage system
- Mounting a power extension strip
- Replacing a like-for-like extractor fan.
- Wiring in a washing machine or cooker to an existing point.
- Adding remote control LED bulbs to existing light fixtures
These are the kinds of jobs that a competent and confident handyman can undertake. Adding a handful of non-notifiable jobs to your handyman’s list of general property maintenance can usually be done without issue.
If you are unsure, feel free to message me and ask – I am always happy to advise you on whether your work is non-notifiable. And remember once again: if you remain unsure, get a qualified electrician.