How Often Should a Commercial EICR Be Done? London Industry Intervals

Domestic EICR intervals (5 years rented, 10 years owner-occupier) are set by statute and BS 7671. Commercial intervals come from IET Guidance Note 3 (Inspection & Testing) — guidance not statute, but referenced by insurers, lease covenants and HSE inspectors.

The principle is risk-based: higher footfall, higher load, harsher environment or more vulnerable occupants = shorter interval. The IET table is the starting point; the actual interval can be shorter if the installation, environment or risk assessment justifies it.

Offices: 5 years maximum. Most City of London and West End office leases mandate 5-year intervals as a tenant obligation. Multi-tenant buildings often shorten to 3 years on the landlord-controlled landlord-areas.

Retail (high street shops, boutiques, mid-size stores): 5 years. Department stores and large multi-floor retail typically shorten to 3 years given the higher footfall and tenant fit-out churn.

Hospitality (hotels, bars, pubs): 5 years for the main installation. Annual or 3-yearly for high-risk specific items — kitchen extract systems, function-room temporary connections, outdoor terrace lighting.

Restaurants get a shorter interval (3 years) under IET GN3 because of the heat, grease, humidity, and constant in-service damage in commercial kitchens. Cable sheaths perish faster, terminations loosen with thermal cycling, RCDs see frequent nuisance trips from steam ingress.

For high-volume central London restaurants (200+ covers/day) we often recommend annual visual + RCD test plus 3-year full EICR. Many insurers (Allianz, Hiscox restaurant policies) require this cadence as a condition of cover.

Open-fire pizza/grill operations and Korean-BBQ style table-extract setups push the interval down further. Annual EICR plus quarterly visual+RCD test is common.

Schools: 5 years maximum, with annual visual inspection. Holiday-period testing is standard practice to avoid disruption. The DfE's "Good Estate Management for Schools" guidance references the 5-year EICR cadence.

Hospitals: 5 years for the general installation, but theatres, ITU and other group 2 medical locations are tested annually. NHS estate procurement contracts typically build in the higher cadence as a condition.

Care homes and supported living: 5 years EICR plus annual visual. CQC inspections check for evidence of compliance; failures often trigger interim re-test demands.

Leisure centres with swimming pools: annual EICR. Water + electrics is the highest-risk combination in BS 7671 (Section 702). The annual interval reflects the consequence of failure.

Gyms and dry leisure (no pool): 3 years standard. Sauna and steam-room areas pulled to annual.

Caravan parks and marinas: annual. The combination of weather exposure, salt, and the high turnover of mobile loads (pitches, boats) makes this the highest-cadence non-pool category.

Industrial sites (factories, warehouses, light manufacturing): 3 years. Heavier-duty industrial with significant motor load or harsh environment (chemical, foundry, food processing) can pull to annual.

Construction sites: 3 months. The most surprising number on the list, but consistent with HSE requirements and the reality of site temporary supplies. 110V transformer secondaries, distribution boards bolted to scaffold, leads strung across mud — the failure mode rate is high enough that monthly visual + 3-monthly test is the documented standard.

Petrol stations, fuel storage, hazardous-zone environments: annual minimum, often with documented competent-person visits more frequently. DSEAR and ATEX rules apply alongside BS 7671.

Churches and places of worship: 5 years standard. Many historic churches have a competent-person visit annually to inspect bell-tower wiring, organ blower circuits, and external floodlighting.

Public buildings (libraries, town halls, theatres): annual for performance/assembly spaces because of stage lighting, temporary connections and audience risk. 5 years for back-of-house/office areas.

Conference and exhibition venues: annual for the show floor, 5 years for fixed back-of-house. The frequent temporary-stage and exhibitor-supply work justifies the shorter front-of-house cadence.

Insurance: many commercial policies (Aviva, Allianz, AXA commercial) name an EICR cadence as a condition of cover — typically 5 years for low-risk, 3 years for restaurants/leisure, annual for swimming pools and high-hazard. A claim made when the EICR is overdue is often refused.

Lease covenants: standard commercial leases require the tenant to maintain electrical installations and supply EICRs on demand. End-of-lease dilapidations frequently include EICR cost as a recoverable.

Post-fit-out re-test: any fit-out involving new circuits, new boards, or major alteration triggers a fresh certificate (BS 7671 Form 1) and resets the EICR clock. If the fit-out only added circuits, the existing EICR remains valid for the untouched circuits but a new EIC covers the new work.