Studio / 1-bed
Quoted
Full inspection + NICEIC certificate
- All circuits inspected
- RCD trip-time tests
- Insulation resistance + earth-loop tests
- Sample destructive inspection (1 in 4 fittings)
- 48-hour digital certificate
Electrical
EICR safety inspections
Electrical Installation Condition Reports for landlords and homeowners. Required every 5 years for rentals. Booked, attended, certificate in 48 hours.
Pricing Quoted
Clear quote · Gas Safe registered · Checkatrade approved
- 1Send the detailsPhotos, postcode, what's happening: phone, WhatsApp or form.
- 2Same-day replyNigel confirms price, visit time or survey slot.
- 3Fixed quoteWritten down before any work starts. No surprises.
Indicative scope
Exact pricing is confirmed before work starts and depends on the property, access, parts and fault diagnosis.
2–3 bed
Quoted
Most common Cardiff rentals
- Everything in the smaller tier
- Larger circuit count + extra test points
- Photos of every consumer unit + key fittings
- Suggested rectification quote (no obligation)
- 5-year reminder cycle pre-booked
4-bed+ / HMO
Quoted
HMO and larger rentals quoted on inspection
- Per-room inspection schedule
- Multiple consumer units handled
- Compliance with HMO licensing standards
- C1/C2/C3 codes documented + photographed
- Rectification quote inside 48 hours
EICR
Rental EICR due in the next 12 months?
Electrical Installation Condition Reports for landlords and homeowners. Required every 5 years for rentals. Booked, attended, certificate in 48 hours.
What you receive
Every job ends with the same paperwork: certificates, records, and reminders. No chasing required.
- Full Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR), typically 12–24 pages.
- C1, C2 and C3 fault categorisation against current 18th Edition wiring regs.
- Schedule of circuits, test results and inspection summary.
- 5-year reminder pre-booked.
- Fixed-price remedial quote for any C1 or C2 fault.
- Tenant + insurer copies on request.
At a glance
Quick facts before you read on.
What's included
5 things, no extras on the day- All circuits inspected
- RCD trip-time tests
- Insulation resistance + earth-loop tests
- Sample destructive inspection (1 in 4 fittings)
How we quote
Confirmed before work startsStudio / 1-bed flat, full inspection.
Certification
NICEIC Part PJob done to standards. Paperwork on the day.
Service area
Cardiff, Penarth, Barry, CaerphillyEvery privately rented home in England and Wales has needed an EICR every five years since 2020. The next renewal cycle is now landing in waves, so book early. Same-week appointments, electrical certificate within 48 hours, from £180 for a studio or 1-bed.
What an EICR actually involves
An EICR is a non-invasive inspection of the fixed electrical installation: the consumer unit, the circuits, the sockets and switches, and a sample of the cabling. We test the residual current device (RCD) trip times, check the earthing and bonding, and look for anything that could pose a fire or shock risk.
The visit takes 2–4 hours depending on the property size. Power is off in zones for short periods, and we coordinate that with you and your tenant.
What we test:
- Insulation resistance on every circuit (500V test): checks for damaged cable insulation.
- Continuity on the protective conductors (earth wire) and the ring final circuits.
- Polarity at every fitting: confirms live and neutral aren’t reversed.
- Earth-loop impedance: measures how quickly a breaker would trip in a fault.
- RCD trip times: must be ≤40ms at rated current.
- Visual inspection of every consumer unit, plus a sample (1 in 4) destructive inspection of fittings (faceplates removed, terminals checked).
Pricing
| Property | Price |
|---|---|
| Studio / 1-bed flat | £180 |
| 2-bed property | £200 |
| 3-bed property | £225 |
| 4-bed+ property | £260 |
| HMO (3+ unrelated tenants) | quote on inspection |
For letting agents managing portfolios of 6+ properties, we offer per-property volume rates with quarterly invoicing: see landlord checks.
What the certificate looks like
You’ll receive a digital PDF within 48 hours, signed by a qualified inspector, with each circuit assessed against BS 7671 (the IET Wiring Regulations).
If anything’s flagged it’s coded:
- C1 (immediate danger): dangerous condition. Power must be isolated; rectification required before re-energising.
- C2 (potentially dangerous): could become dangerous; rectification required before re-letting.
- C3 (improvement recommended): not dangerous but below modern standard; rectification advised but not legally required.
- FI (further investigation): defect requires further investigation to assess.
A certificate is “satisfactory” only if no C1 or C2 items remain. C3 items don’t fail the certificate; they’re noted for future improvement.
What we don’t do
- Issue a satisfactory certificate to skip rectification. If we find a C1 or C2 item, it goes on the certificate. Some firms issue questionable certs to keep landlord clients happy; we don’t.
- Skip destructive inspection. A proper EICR includes 1-in-4 destructive sampling. Visual-only “EICRs” are non-compliant.
- Quote without seeing the consumer unit. We always ask for a photo before booking, since it tells us how much work the inspection will be.
For homeowners
For homeowners, an EICR is good practice every 10 years and required by mortgage providers and insurers in some circumstances (especially after a property purchase or major rewire). Same pricing applies; same electrical certificate. Useful for selling too, since it’s a strong reassurance for buyers.
Common mistakes other firms make
- Issuing certs without proper testing. Some “EICRs” are 30-minute walk-arounds with no insulation tester. The certificate is technically issued but the inspection is hollow.
- Coding everything C3 to keep the cert satisfactory. Real C2 items get downgraded to C3 to avoid forcing rectification. We code honestly.
- Forgetting the 5-year cycle. We pre-book the reminder for 4 years 9 months ahead, so you never lapse.
Workmanship and warranty
12-month workmanship warranty on rectification work. NICEIC registration means the certificate is independently verifiable from the registration number, which is useful for insurance claims, sales completion, or HMO licensing audits.
Used PHBLUE for our 6-flat block annual cycle, CP12, EICR and smoke alarms all in single visits per flat. Certificates land within two days every time. Compliance reporting is a single CSV. No chasing required. Switched from a cheaper firm last year and won't go back.
Recent jobs near you
A few of the jobs we have finished lately, with the postcode and what was involved.
- CF24 April
Cardiff Bay 5-flat block, full EICR cycle, 4 satisfactory + 1 C2 rectified.
- CF14 April
Whitchurch HMO, 8-room property, full inspection and C2 rectification.
- CF11 March
Canton 3-bed terrace, homeowner sale prep, EICR before completion.
- CF64 March
Penarth 2-bed flat, letting agent annual cycle.
How the job runs
- 01
Booking
Same weekTell us property type, postcode, and tenant contact (or that you'll arrange access). We typically book inside 5 working days.
- 02
Inspection
2–4 hoursPower off in zones for short periods. Every circuit tested for insulation resistance, continuity, polarity. RCDs trip-tested. Sample destructive inspection of fittings (1 in 4).
- 03
Code assignment
Within inspectionFindings coded against BS 7671, using C1 (immediate danger), C2 (potentially dangerous), C3 (improvement recommended) and FI (further investigation). Certificate is "satisfactory" only if no C1 or C2 items remain.
- 04
Certification
48 hoursDigital PDF emailed inside 48 hours. qualified contractor, verifiable from the registration number alone. Stored on our portal for 7 years.
- 05
Rectification (if needed)
Same weekAnything coded C1 or C2 gets a fixed-price quote inside 48 hours of the inspection. No obligation to use us, but legally required to fix before re-letting.
Common questions
Are you NICEIC registered?
Yes, PHBLUE's electrical work is carried out by NICEIC-approved engineers. Notifiable work (Part P) is registered with your local Building Control automatically through NICEIC. You get the certificate emailed within 14 days.
How much does an EICR cost in Cardiff?
Domestic EICR (Electrical Installation Condition Report) starts at £150 for a flat or 1–2 bed home, £180 for 3–4 bed, £220 for 5+ bed. Includes the full report, photographs, and a follow-up phone call to walk you through any C1/C2/C3 codes. Landlord packages combining EICR + smoke/CO checks save £25.
My RCD keeps tripping - what's likely wrong?
Almost always one of three things. A failing appliance pulling the circuit down (we'll isolate by elimination). A damaged cable connection in the wall, usually behind a socket or switch where the live and neutral have crept closer over time. Or an end-of-life RCD, since modern dual-RCD consumer units are rated for around 15 years.
Do I need a new consumer unit?
If yours is a wooden-back, plastic-back, or pre-2008 metal unit without RCD protection, yes, because Wiring Regs (BS 7671) require it for compliance. A standard CU swap is £550–£750 fitted, NICEIC-certified. We'll check yours during an EICR or any other visit free.
Can you fit EV chargers?
Yes, OZEV-approved installer for 7kW home wallboxes (Pod Point, Easee, Wallbox, Hypervolt). Survey is free for households with off-street parking. We handle the DNO notification if your supply needs upgrading. The OZEV £350 grant ended in March 2022 for homeowners, but it's still available for renters and flat-owners under EVHS.
What's the smell of burning from my socket?
Switch off the circuit at the consumer unit and ring us. Don't wait. Burnt connections behind a faceplate progress fast, so what's a hot socket today is a wall fire next week. We treat these as priority callouts.
How long does a CP12 take?
About 30–45 minutes for a single-let with a boiler, hob and one gas fire. Bigger flats, multiple appliances, or HMOs take longer, and we'll quote the time alongside the price.
Can you contact the tenant directly to arrange access?
Yes. Once you book, we text the tenant to agree a window, and we update you when access is confirmed. We can also coordinate with your letting agent if you'd rather we go through them.
How quickly is the certificate sent?
Most certificates land in your inbox the same day. We send PDF copies of the Gas Safety Record and any electrical certificate to you and (on request) the tenant.
Can you remind me when it's due to renew next year?
Yes, we pre-book a free reminder for 11 months ahead. If you'd rather we just rebook the visit automatically, we can do that too.
Can you handle multiple properties?
Yes. We work with landlords from one let up to portfolios. For 6+ properties we'll set a fixed rate per property, scheduled in batches to keep tenant disruption down.
What happens if an appliance fails the safety check?
We document the fault category (At Risk or Immediately Dangerous) and tell you what's needed to bring it back to compliant. Most defects can be fixed on the same visit if parts are available.
Can you do CP12 and EICR together?
Yes, that's our landlord bundle. One visit, both certificates, tenant only disturbed once. Electrical work is completed by qualified electrical contractors and certificates are provided where applicable.
Do you charge a call-out fee?
No, not for any job we go on to quote or carry out. Diagnostic visits where we don't end up doing work are charged at our standard hourly rate (£90 first hour, £55 after) and we'll always tell you that up front.
Are quotes fixed price or estimates?
Fixed-price for everything we can survey: boiler installs, bathrooms, EV chargers, EICRs, central heating refurbs, heat pumps. Variable-rate for diagnostic and repair work, but with hourly rates published on every relevant page so you know before we start.
Can you take a deposit and stage payments?
For jobs over £3,000 we take a 30% deposit at scheduling, 50% on day one, balance on completion. That covers our materials outlay without exposing you. Smaller jobs are paid on completion. We accept bank transfer, card, and Apple/Google Pay; no cash in hand.
Do you offer finance?
Not directly: we're not authorised to broker credit. For boiler installs, Worcester Bosch and Vaillant both run their own finance schemes (0% over 12 months on installs through accredited installers like us). Ask at quote stage and we'll send you the application link.
Do you give written quotes?
Always. Every job over £200 gets a written, itemised, fixed-price quote before any work starts. The quote is yours to keep, valid for 30 days, and the price on it is what you'll pay: line-item breakdown for materials, labour, and any provisional sums.