Remember the farce in England with two rival competent person registers being set up online, because some people didn’t want to play happy families?

In UK, unlike rest of Europe,  Engineer and Electrician terms are not protected by law so you can have an engineer or electrician doing work which could be hazardous.


For electrician,  if there is a problem and work was not carried out by a recognised person, the insurance company will not pay for damages.


When house is sold or rented, a professional electrician surveyor report is required.  If not provided, the landlord is responsible.

There's a real and urgent need to regulate who can do electrical work throughout the UK.


But whilst people say they want electricians to be qualified and vetted, in reality there are enough people who for various reasons don't really want that to happen.


Part P was badly drawn up, then not enforced because there wasn't any funding for enforcement. 


A levy off each Part P notification could easily covered enforcement with trading standards taking the lead rather than building control. 


It's easy to find really bad electrical work to take photos of, take this example of the wiring to a PV feed-in meter wiring from this afternoon. 


Presumably the handiwork of an electrician vetted to be the member of a couple of schemes and having completed additional training, has issued certification as well as completing a Part P notification and DNO notification.


Spot the bare copper. 

I was actually at that job this afternoon to check out and repair a storage heater, the observation on the state of the PV system wiring was merely incidental, the CPC from the twin and earth is terminated into the off peak fuse board earth bar, why go back to the dedicated PV CU when that one is closer?

There is a clear and obvious need for the regulation of who can do electrical work throughout the UK and if asked people will tell you that they think that electricians should be regulated.


But the reality is there’s too many people who will object to the introduction of regulations and non-electricians who will operate outside of any system of supervision that may be introduced to make a scheme work.


In addition there may not be enough qualified electricians in Scotland to launch a scheme and some of those who are qualified may be rough as a badgers ####.


So at least count how many electricians there are in Scotland that would meet the requirements to be deemed a qualified electrician, then decide how standards will be monitored and enforced if a scheme is introduced; and more importantly how it’s going to be paid for, will there be a requirement for paid for notifications that a levy can be deducted from to cover enforcement costs?


Andy Betteridge

No matter what the regulations, rules or scheme whatever is decided, if you dont have a "Police Force" that will inact and fine/punish those nor following the rules it will fail. All that happens is those already trying and indeed doing a good job and competent electricians, pay yet more while those who dont heed to anything will continue as normal. Of course any research the public/consumer will state they want professional qualified electricians, but when they then have to pay the going rate, then wee jimmy down the pub will throw in the sockets/light/EV charger etc.

In some ways and I appreaciate the views already of others made on this thread one size doesnt fit all. I a few years back run a supply into my detached garage, installed lighting, sockets and distribution board and tested it all etc. Local authority insisted I must get a registered firm to at least inspect the work!! That was until I pointed out the clause in the regs that says If Im suitably qualified I can do so myself and local authority must check, needless to say, guy came out and said best installed garage electrics he had ever seen, then asked what I do for a job? then the penny dropped that I as the house holder was still a SJIB registered electrician and a few other bits of paper.

We also read and yes there are still breaches but the old Corgi or Gas safe as it is now, they have "Modules" for the type and exact type of work undertaken, pipework, appliances, commercial, domesticc, install, maintenance etc and the holder of that cert puts down their "Badge" No or whatever on the certificates to say they were responsible, why can the electrical industry not do the same, so your so called kitchen fitters/plumbers have say Module 1, industrial/commercial/install/service/process/Haz area/inspection/testing/LV/HV/Data/Comms and people just do the modules for work they do, that said those with craft apprenticeships should achieve a Min amount of these modules. Yes training or certification people make money especially when CPD and refreshing is say every three years. Who pays for all of that? its passed to the consumer of course. Trading Standards are the people to enforce, but like all local authority departments people have been shed to save money but those remaining have even more regulations to enforce, so what do they do? A  risk assessment so a householder that gets an extra light or socket installed, wont be at the top of that agenda, then again how would they even know about it unless notifiable and people will not do that.

Its public perception, they just dont get the dangers of employing people not competent for the task to be done, also are those people likley to have the correct insurances? I doubt it, so that opens another Pandoras box. So why should an insurance company pay out to fix the damage caused by incorrect electrical work by an uninsured person/company, is that how we start educating the consumer?


I think the idea of protected status for "Electrician" sounds good but just dont see how they can achieve anything positive. Somebody mentioned the NICEIC and yes everybody knew who and what they were, but they have lost there were since rebadging/merging and their focus is on domestic market and selling nice T Shirts and van stickers to their members, so I think their buisness plans and aproach isnt what it should be.

In twenty years I have been asked to take proof that I’m a “real electrician” to a job site with twice by the same customer.


The jobs were taking the the Waterford crystal chandeliers down in the Royal Worcester Porcelain and Royal Brierley Crystal shops for the firm doing the clearance when they went bust, no one actually asked to see any ID at all, the security guys just let me in as I had a ladder, tools and PPE they just accepted that I was supposed to be there and I knew what I was doing.


I actually  wear my NAPIT ID lanyard with the card tucked inside my shirt every working day, no one has ever asked to see it.


However I do turn up wearing a shirt with my name on it then I introduce myself and generally give the customer a card on arrival and a certificate when I leave or a few days later.

The NICEIC has really lost the status it had years ago and there is little or no brand recognition these days.


I thought it was disgraceful when the parent company started selling franchises to operate renewable energy companies with advertising aimed at the general public saying that these newly formed franchise companies could be trusted because they were part of the NICEIC group of companies that had been operating since 1956. For a supposed “regulator” to be selling franchises was disgraceful.


It should also be noted that the full name is the 

National Inspection Council for Electrical Installation Contracting

originally the inspectors turned up with set of calibrated test equipment and did a full inspection and test of the installation that had been submitted for approval.


That changed, now the Qualified Supervisor is assessed for competence.


So the electrical work gets a visual inspection, then the QS may be asked to do a test and the paperwork checked.


This then covers every electrician on the books, no one checks individual competence.


So if electrician were to become a protected title the would have to be a change in that individual competence would have to be checked to level that would have to be defined. However, that doesn’t stop others doing electrical work using a different job title without further regulation.

Regards that photo of the feed in meter wiring.


I assume the installation company would have been MCS registered as well as being a member of a self certification scheme for Part P.


Those registrations didn’t achieve much did they?


If the public brand recognition is low for the NICEIC what do you think the chances are of them being able to tell you what the MCS is?


As I drive around England and Wales I see vans with stickers proclaiming the membership of multiple schemes all down the sides of their vans, one forum member commented a few years ago that some of these firms are going to have to get their guys to drive around with the back doors open, because there’s no space left down the sides on their vans,


I do find myself asking what these multiple scheme memberships achieve?


When I first read this post I did an internet search for electricians in remote parts of Scotland, I found some do not even bother mentioning they are members of a competence scheme on their websites and I had to do further checks to see if they are. My wife was sat next to me, I said to her that they didn’t advertise scheme memberships and her response was what I was already thinking, in remote areas people either know who the electrician is or will ask for a recommendation from a friend or neighbour. It’s only really going to be in the cities where there’s a large choice of contractors who you are not familiar with. I presume the electricians in remote parts of Scotland have a website so people can find their contact details, rather than trying to flog themselves as being something superior because they are members of a competence scheme.


The basics of advertising, what you do, where you do it, your trading hours, how much you charge and how to get in touch with you.


Logos, badges and pages of bumf are optional extras, including competence scheme logos.