If you let a home in Reading or Oxford, you must have the fixed electrics inspected and tested by a qualified person at least every five years. You must also give each tenant a copy of the report (usually an EICR) on time, and finish any remedial work it calls for within 28 days, or sooner if the report says so. On top of that, both councils run licensing schemes that ask for your EICR, and the council can fine you up to £40,000 if you don't meet your duties.
This guide covers those duties and deadlines. If you want to know what the electrician looks at, and what C1, C2, C3 and FI mean, read our guide to what an EICR actually checks first.
The short version
- At least every five years. The fixed installation (wiring, sockets, light fittings, consumer unit, and fixed items such as showers and extractors) must be inspected and tested by a qualified person.
- Copies on time. Existing tenants within 28 days of the inspection, new tenants before they move in, and the council within 7 days if it asks.
- C1, C2 or FI means work. Finish it within 28 days, or the shorter period in the report, then send written confirmation to the tenant and the council within 28 days of finishing.
- Licensing adds paperwork. Oxford requires a licence for almost every privately rented home in the city. In Reading, most HMOs need one: those with five or more occupants under mandatory licensing, and since 1 March 2026 those with three or four under additional licensing. Both want to see your EICR.
- Keep records. If a tenant won't let you in, or the work can't be done in 28 days, your emails and notes are your evidence that you took all reasonable steps.
- Check the electrician yourself. Look them up on the NICEIC or NAPIT register before you book.
What the law asks of landlords
The rules come from the Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020, which were extended to social housing in 2025. The government's guidance for landlords, tenants and councils sets out what you must do. In short, you must:
- make sure the electrical safety standards in the 18th Edition of the Wiring Regulations (BS 7671) are met
- have the installation inspected and tested by a qualified, competent person at least every five years
- get a report that gives the results and sets a date for the next inspection
- keep a copy until the next inspection is due (or done, if that's later), and give a copy to the person who does the next one
Which lettings are covered
The rules apply whenever your tenant pays rent and the home is their only or main residence, whether or not the rent is a market rent. They cover licences to occupy as well as tenancies, and shared houses too. The guidance lists the exceptions, including:
- where you, or your family, share the accommodation with the tenant
- long leases, including shared ownership, of seven years or more
- student halls of residence, hostels and refuges
- care homes, hospitals and hospices
- mobile homes, caravans and boats
So a student house in east Oxford or a shared house near Reading's university is covered, but a hall of residence isn't. The regulations don't cover communal areas such as stairwells and corridors in a block of flats, but the council can still take action on unsafe communal electrics under other housing law, so they need checking and maintaining too.
New builds and full rewires
If the home is newly built or has been completely rewired, it should have an Electrical Installation Certificate (EIC). The guidance says you can give tenants a copy of that instead, and you won't need a new inspection until five years after the EIC was issued, as long as you've met your other duties.
Your deadlines at a glance
These time limits come from the government guidance.
| When | What you must do | Deadline |
|---|---|---|
| Inspection done | Give a copy of the report to each existing tenant | Within 28 days of the inspection |
| New tenant | Give them a copy of the latest report | Before they move in |
| Prospective tenant asks | Give them a copy | Within 28 days of the request |
| Council asks | Send the council a copy | Within 7 days of the request |
| Report shows remedial work or further investigation | Get the work done by a qualified person | Within 28 days, or the shorter period the report gives |
| Remedial work finished | Send the report and written confirmation of the work to the tenant and the council | Within 28 days of finishing |
| Next inspection | Inspect and test again | By the date on the report, and at most five years on |
Re-letting doesn't restart the clock
You don't need a new inspection for each new tenancy. If the last one was less than five years ago and the report doesn't call for further work, you just give the new tenant a copy. The guidance does recommend at least a visual check between tenancies for damage or wear since the last report, and an earlier full inspection if anything worries you.
Watch the rollover rule, though. A tenancy that becomes periodic because the original agreement said so is the same tenancy. One that rolls over automatically by law at the end of a fixed term counts as a new tenancy.
When the report says "unsatisfactory"
An installation with any C1 (danger present) or C2 (potentially dangerous) is recorded as unsatisfactory, and you must put it right. An FI (further investigation) must also be followed up. A C3 is only a recommendation: you don't have to act on it, though doing so improves safety.
What counts as proof the work is done
The guidance accepts any of these as written confirmation: a satisfactory EICR, an Electrical Installation Certificate, a Minor Electrical Installation Works Certificate, or another suitable electrical certificate. Ask for the right certificate when you book the remedial work, not afterwards. Some fixes, such as replacing a consumer unit or adding a circuit, are also notifiable under Building Regulations. Our Part P guide explains how that works.
If the work can't be done in 28 days
Sometimes it genuinely can't. You might be waiting for the energy supplier to fit an isolator before a consumer unit can be changed, for example. You aren't in breach if you can show you took all reasonable steps. Keep a clear record of every message, quote and booking.
If a tenant won't let you in
The same "all reasonable steps" test applies. You won't be in breach just because you haven't gone to court to get access. Keep copies of every attempt to arrange a visit, along with past reports and servicing records showing the installation was in good order.
What the council can do
If the council believes you've broken your duties, it must serve a remedial notice (unless the report says urgent action is needed). If you don't comply, it can arrange the work itself and recover the cost from you. If urgent remedial work hasn't been done in the time the report gives, the council can send someone in, with the tenant's consent, after giving the tenant at least 48 hours' notice.
The government guidance says councils can impose a financial penalty of up to £40,000. For offences from 1 May 2026, the Renters' Rights Act 2025 penalty rules apply. Earlier offences fall under the previous rules. You can make representations and appeal to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber), but the time limits are short, so read any notice the day it arrives.
Oxford: licensing on top of the law
Oxford City Council has run selective licensing across the whole city since 1 September 2022. So family homes and one- or two-person lets that aren't HMOs need a licence. Its selective licensing application page lists the EICR among the certificates it wants with the application. You need to send them to get the early bird and accreditation discounts, and if you don't, the property goes higher up the list for inspection.
The council's selective licence conditions go further than the national rules. A valid report must be in place for the whole licence, with no gaps between report dates, and you must send it to the council on demand along with evidence that remedial work has been done. The conditions also say the inspection, report and all electrical work must be done by electricians registered and assessed by a UKAS-accredited certification body.
Shared houses in Oxford
HMOs with five or more tenants need a mandatory HMO licence. Oxford's additional licensing scheme covers HMOs with three or four tenants and section 257 HMOs (some converted blocks of flats). The renewed scheme came into force on 25 June 2026 and runs for five years. Oxford's standard HMO licence conditions ask for a report dated within the last five years, a new one sent in when the old one expires, and no gaps between them.
Reading: most shared houses now need a licence
Reading Borough Council says most HMOs with five or more occupants need a mandatory licence, and that since 1 March 2026 HMOs with three or four occupants need one under its additional HMO licensing scheme. Its HMO application guidance asks for a satisfactory EICR dated within the past five years, provided by a member of a “relevant competent person’s scheme, such as NICEIC, Elecsa or NAPIT” (the council’s wording). You can provide an Electrical Installation Certificate from the past five years instead of an EICR, but only if it covers a complete rewire or a consumer unit replacement that took in every circuit.
Note the word "satisfactory": if your last report wasn't, get the remedial work done and certified before you apply.
Elsewhere in Berkshire, Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire and Surrey, only the national rules apply unless your council runs its own selective or additional licensing scheme, so check with your council.
Booking the inspection
Whoever you use, check them yourself: look them up on the NICEIC register or the NAPIT register and make sure the business name matches the one on the quote. Our EICR guide explains the October 2026 change to how electricians are assessed for this work. Before you book, ask:
- Will the report set the date for the next inspection?
- If you find C1s, will you make them safe before you leave?
- Will you quote separately for any remedial work, so I can get a second quote?
- Which certificate will I get for remedial work, so I can send it to the tenant and the council?
If you have a gas supply, the annual gas safety check is a separate legal duty. Our guide to checking a Gas Safe engineer covers that.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a new EICR when tenants change?
No, as long as the last inspection was less than five years ago and the report doesn't call for more work. Give the new tenant a copy before they move in. The guidance still recommends a quick visual check between tenancies.
Do I have to test the appliances I provide?
For private landlords, the regulations cover the fixed installation, not plug-in appliances. The extra duty to check landlord-supplied equipment at least every five years applies to social landlords. You still need to keep anything you supply safe, and Oxford's licence conditions say so too.
Can my letting agent handle it?
They can arrange it, but the duties stay with you. Ask for the report, the date it reached the tenant and any remedial certificates, and keep copies.
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