Discuss Argument FOR Periodic Inspections for Landlords. in the Electrical Forum area at ElectriciansForums.net

Welcome to ElectriciansForums.net - The American Electrical Advice Forum
Head straight to the main forums to chat by click here:   American Electrical Advice Forum

G

gmchris

I have asked a letting agent customer of mine to consider having periodic inspection reports/electrical condition reports on the properties he manages, and he has agreed in principle, but the individual landlords of each property have to agree first before he can order the work on their behalf.
He has asked me to provide a letter that he can send out to landlords to convince them they need a PIR, but he has previous experience of the landlords not bothering, as they dont see it as a legal requirement like a gas cert. I have a lot of potential work at stake here- possibley PIR's and remedials on 300+ houses/flats.

Has anybody seen any good, convincing (preferably true) arguments i can use to convert these tight landlords that they need their electrical installations inspecting? I am struggling to find mandatory documentation or government endorsed guidelines to push PIR's.

Any ideas or useful quotes from sucsessful PIR marketing welcome!!
 
Don't the landlords realise that its an expense against their business. I.e. the cost may not "cost" them anthing - if they are that set against therental income. May be they are not declaring the income!
 
There's a quote in GN3 and I think the regs which states something like the landlord or building owner had a duty of care to keep the electrical installation maintained and inns safe condition, as we all know just because it works it isn't safe, so a PIR would go someday to proving some compliance with the above, I use that on one if my leaflets, but be careful not to use scare tactics!
 
I have a lot of potential work at stake here- possibley PIR's and remedials on 300+ houses/flats.

Any ideas or useful quotes from sucsessful PIR marketing welcome!!

Nice work!

rules on electrical safety are less specific than for gas and furnishings when letting out property. The landlord is acting as a supplier of electrical equipment, including the electrical wiring in the property as well as any electrical appliances provided for tenants' use. Landlords have a egal duty to ensure that equipment is "safe". It is therefore recommended that appliances should be annually PAT tested (portable electrical appliance safety test) wiring of the flat or house should be checked at least every 5 years to obtain a Periodic Inspection Report. Although not mandatory BS7671 also suggests testing on change of occupancy.

theres a bit of use in that on how to market PIR.. try scare tactics!

hope that helps
 
As a landlord, perhaps I can provide some insight; Landlords are concerned with maximising Income and minimising Expenses. Landlords realise that they only pay tax on the difference, but while expenses do drive down the tax burden, they never come free as gmchris suggests.

Income is maximised and expenses minimised when good tenants who pay regularly stay in the property for a long time. Such tenants don't tend to do damage to the electrical installation, or if they do, they do it just the once and learn what not to do!

So the element of a 'business case' for having a PIR done are:

1) Legislative reasons; various legislation demands that properties are safe to be rented out and are maintained in a safe condition. The ESC's Landlords Guides do a good job of explaining the relevant legislation, but no legislation mandates a PIR or a frequency that they must be carried out. However, landlords have to comply with the law, and can expect to have to justify to a court or local authority how they ensure that their properties meet the relevant legislation. (PIRs should form part of a safety management plan)

2) Good Practice; the ESC's Landlord's Guide is in the public domain and is from an authoritative body. Landlord's have to be wary about ignoring best practice advice, as again this could be questioned in court, and could paint the landlord in a bad light.

3) Reduction in risk to Life; no reasonable Landlord wants a death in their property that could have been prevented.

4) Reducting in risk to the Property; Landlord do not want periods when they cannot rent their property because it has been damaged by something that is their fault, or that they are responsible for.

5) Reducting in cost on Insurance; Landlord insurance will be more expensive after a fire caused by non-maintenance of the electrical installation.

6) Tenant Reassurance/Happiness; Tenants are happiers when the landlord undertakes proactive maintenance of their property, especially when this is aimed that keeping them and their families safe. Unfortunately the need to actually access the property to carry out PIRs and repairs does tkae the edge of this for some tenants. This only works as an argument where the Landlord want the tenant to stay - some tenants you just want them to elecrocute themselves, but they never seem to quite manage it...

7) Geater Marketing Potential; Universities, Local Companies, and Letting Agents will be happier about recommending a landlord or property if they believe that it is safer because an obvious safety management plan is in place. Some may not take the property onto their books unless this is in place.

The best PIR is cheap, thorough, and explains the problems found in laymans terms and comes with a free estimate of the cost-effective ways to address the problems.

Good luck with your marketing.
 
The Electricity at Work regulations state that an electrical installation must be maintained, so far as reasonable practicable, so as to prevent danger. This requirement may be met by having a Periodic inspection report done at appropriate intervals and acting on the results. This presents a far cheaper alternative for landlords than setting up a planned preventative maintenance scheme which requires a lot of time, effort and record keeping.

It is important to note that there is no specific requirement for PIRs in the regulations, just that this is a cheap and easy way of meeting the safety requirements of the regulations.

If neither PIR or PPM are in place then a landlord may have legal difficulty in case of an incident with an electrical installation in explaining how they have kept to the regulations as mentioned above.

Also remember that a PIR is a means of confirming that an installation is safe for continued use, present no danger to person livestock or property and no dangerous non compliance with the current wiring regulations exist. A PIR does not include recommendations on remedial work, although this may be addressed in the covering letter.
 
Thanks chaps! That all sounds like good advice. I think a letter with some ESC quotes and the scary question "How would you prove in court or to your insurer, that you had taken steps to ensure electrical safety?" may be the way to go.
 

Reply to Argument FOR Periodic Inspections for Landlords. in the Electrical Forum area at ElectriciansForums.net

OFFICIAL SPONSORS

Electrical Goods - Electrical Tools - Brand Names Electrician Courses Green Electrical Goods PCB Way Electrical Goods - Electrical Tools - Brand Names Pushfit Wire Connectors Electric Underfloor Heating Electrician Courses
These Official Forum Sponsors May Provide Discounts to Regular Forum Members - If you would like to sponsor us then CLICK HERE and post a thread with who you are, and we'll send you some stats etc

Electrical Forum

Welcome to the Electrical Forum at ElectriciansForums.net. The friendliest electrical forum online. General electrical questions and answers can be found in the electrical forum.
This website was designed, optimised and is hosted by Untold Media. Operating under the name Untold Media since 2001.
Back
Top
AdBlock Detected

We get it, advertisements are annoying!

Sure, ad-blocking software does a great job at blocking ads, but it also blocks useful features of our website. For the best site experience please disable your AdBlocker.

I've Disabled AdBlock