HMO Electrical Requirements London — 2026 Licensing Standards

A domestic EICR covers the consumer unit, the circuits and the accessories inside the dwelling. An HMO EICR adds the communal lighting and sockets, the entrance and stair lighting, the fire-alarm system supply, the emergency lighting supply, the external lighting and any landlord-supplied appliances. The scope of testing is wider and the inspection time materially longer.

Every 5 years under both the Management of HMOs (England) Regulations 2006 Regulation 6 and the Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector Regulations 2020. The certificate must be in date at the point of any licensing application and remain in date through the council's processing window. We recommend renewal where the EICR is within 6 months of expiry at the date of application.

BS 5839-6 is the British Standard for fire-alarm systems in domestic premises. Grade D1 means mains-powered alarms with battery backup. LD2 is the coverage category requiring alarms in every escape route plus rooms of high fire risk (kitchen, living room). For HMOs the standard expectation is Grade D1 LD2 interlinked — every alarm sounds when any one detects.

Where the FRA identifies an escape route that cannot be navigated safely in the dark, BS 5266-1 emergency lighting is required. In practice this applies to almost every HMO with 3+ storeys and any HMO with a long internal corridor without natural light. The system runs three-hour test annually and is documented in the FRA action plan.

BS 7671 is the UK wiring regulations (the IET Wiring Regulations). The 2018 18th edition introduced AFDD (arc-fault detection) recommendations and tightened RCD requirements. The 2026 A4 amendment makes Type A RCDs mandatory on socket-outlet circuits in dwellings and sets out further AFDD coverage. EICRs issued after the A4 amendment date assess installations against the current standard.

Yes — since the BS 7671 17th edition amendment 3 (effective 2016), domestic consumer units in escape-route locations must have a non-combustible enclosure (metal-clad). Many older HMOs still have plastic consumer units in the entrance hall or stair location — this is a C2 finding on the EICR and triggers replacement under the 28-day remedial rule.

Supplementary equipotential bonding is the connection of all extraneous and exposed conductive parts within a bathroom (towel rail, taps, waste pipe) to earth, providing fault-protection where the main equipotential bonding cannot guarantee safe disconnection times. Newham's standards officers routinely raise C2 challenges on missing supplementary bonding in HMO bathrooms.

A satisfactory EICR with full schedule of test results, NICEIC-numbered, a competent-person declaration signed by the qualifying supervisor, and any C1, C2 or FI codes either remediated or accompanied by a satisfactory re-issue. Several councils (Newham, Hackney, Waltham Forest) require dual upload — cover certificate plus separate schedule of test results.

Under the 2020 Electrical Safety Standards Regulations, where an EICR shows C1, C2 or FI codes the landlord must complete remedial works and provide written confirmation to the tenant within 28 days. The council must be notified within 7 days of completion. Failure to meet the deadline triggers a £30,000 civil penalty per breach.

The audit produces the four certificates and declarations the council expects to see in the electrical section of the application: EICR, BS 5839-6 cert, BS 5266-1 cert and Regulation 6 declaration. Where the audit is bundled with the £400 licensing assistance, the £350 audit fee is offset against the licensing assistance fee — net cost £550 for both.