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The 14 inspection items on the EICWhat can you write in the inspection boxes?
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Exactly as they are on the site.
At the bottom of page 2 is the schedule of inspections: 14 headings, and each one gets a ✓ or N/A. Nothing else — no crosses, no codes. Codes are for periodic reports, not new work.
The headings are short on purpose. What each one actually covers is in BS 7671 Appendix 6, which lists the items to check under every heading, each with the regulation number in brackets. Have it open while you go round. The form only shows the headline, so it’s easy to tick a box you never really checked.
| Item | What you’re looking at | Domestic example |
|---|---|---|
| 1 Condition of consumer’s intake equipment (visual inspection only) | The service head, meter, tails and cut-out. It belongs to the DNO, so you look and don’t open anything: secure, undamaged, no sign of tampering or burning. If it’s dangerous, the person who ordered the work needs to tell the DNO | ✓ |
| 2 Parallel or switched alternative sources of supply | A generator, solar PV, a wind turbine or a battery as well as the public supply | N/A |
| 3 Protective measure: automatic disconnection of supply (ADS) | The earthing, the bonding and the devices that make ADS work. By far the most common protective measure | ✓ |
| 4 Basic protection | Protection against touching live parts in normal use: insulation, barriers, enclosures | ✓ |
| 5 Protective measures other than ADS | Double or reinforced insulation, electrical separation, SELV or PELV — if they’re used as the protective measure | N/A |
| 6 Additional protection | 30 mA RCDs (sockets under 411.3.3, domestic lighting under 411.3.4) and supplementary bonding | ✓ |
| 7 Distribution equipment | The consumer unit: non-combustible enclosure, IP ratings, devices from the board’s own manufacturer, connections tightened to the manufacturer’s torque (so a torque screwdriver), correctly labelled | ✓ |
| 8 Circuits (distribution and final) | Cable and wiring system suitable, supported so it won’t collapse in a fire, accessories fixed, connections tight with all strands in, no bare sheathless cores outside an enclosure, the right lamp for the fitting | ✓ |
| 9 Isolation and switching | Isolation, switching for mechanical maintenance, emergency switching, functional switching — present where needed and the right device for the job | ✓ |
| 10 Current-using equipment (permanently connected) | Fixed equipment such as a cooker or luminaires: secure, suited to where it is, no sign of overheating | ✓ |
| 11 Identification and notices | Circuit identification, MET and bonding labels, and the notices that are required (see section 6) | ✓ |
| 12 Location(s) containing a bath or shower | Section 701 | N/A here |
| 13 Other special installations or locations | The rest of Part 7 | N/A here |
| 14 Prosumer’s low voltage electrical installation(s) | An installation that produces electricity, from PV for example, as well as consuming it from the public supply | N/A here |
The example column is a small new single-phase installation with sockets, a cooker and lighting, no bathroom, and no PV. Your own job will differ.
BS 7671 · Appendix 6 · schedule of inspections and the checklist under each item ★ Guidance Note 3 · Fig 5.2 · p.148 · the 14 items
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- 18th Edition
- Building Regs
- PAT
- Fundamental Inspection & Testing
- Initial Verification
- Periodic Inspection & Testing