Electrician: Part P, certificates and one request in Ireland

The work falls into a few groups. Installation covers new sockets, lighting, outside power, a supply to a garden office or an extension. Replacing a fuse board with a modern consumer unit adds residual current devices (RCDs), which cut the power quickly if current leaks to earth.

Then there is testing. Smart home work, such as smart lighting, heating controls or a hub-based system, sits somewhere in between and often needs a mix of electrical and network skills.

After new work you should receive an Electrical Installation Certificate for a new circuit or larger job, or a Minor Electrical Installation Works Certificate for a small addition. Keep all of them with the house deeds.

These papers are what a buyer's solicitor asks for. A missing compliance certificate for a rewire or a new consumer unit can delay a sale or lead to an indemnity policy or retrospective inspection. If an electrician offers to do notifiable work "without the paperwork", treat that as a reason to walk away.

• Electrical Installation Certificate or Minor Works Certificate, depending on the job
• the test results schedule attached to the certificate
• for an EICR: the full report with every observation and its code, not just a pass or fail

For a rewire, the main factors are the number of rooms and circuits, whether the house is occupied, the floor construction, and how much making good and redecoration you expect afterwards. Solid floors and plaster walls take more work than suspended timber floors. A consumer unit swap is often straightforward, but if testing reveals faults on existing circuits, those have to be fixed before the new board can be certified.

For inspections, price depends mainly on the size of the installation. For small jobs, access and travel make up a large share, so grouping several small tasks into one visit is usually better value. A written quote should say what is included, whether plastering is part of it, and which certificates you will receive.

Whether the installation needs planning permission depends on what is built and where. Many small works on a house are exempted development within set limits, but that exemption does not apply everywhere, for example to protected structures. Ask your county or city council's planning office before you commit if you are unsure.

Electrical work in homes is carried out by Registered Electrical Contractors, and gas work by Registered Gas Installers; ask to see the registration before work starts. Check whether the quote includes VAT, which Revenue charges at different rates depending on the goods and services involved.

Source: revenue.ie

You confirm your mobile number with a text code and your email address with a link. We then show the request to businesses in your area, without your name or contact details. Only one business can take it on; it pays Offrano for the request, and it costs you nothing.

Before that business sees your details, we email you its name, address and phone number. We check only that it is a registered business, for example through its Companies Registration Office entry or VAT number, not the quality of its work. We cannot promise that a business will respond; if nobody takes the request within 21 days, we withdraw it. Offrano is not a party to any contract for the work.