Quick answer An EICR is unsatisfactory if it contains any C1, C2 or FI observation. C3 alone does not fail a report. You then have 28 days (or less, if the report says so) to complete the remedial or further investigative work. But that's only one of five separate deadlines the regulations impose, and most landlord guides list only that one. The maximum financial penalty is £40,000, raised from £30,000 on 1 November 2025 for private landlords. A failed EICR does not automatically mean a rewire, and it does not mean your tenants must leave.
Who this applies to
- Private landlords in England. The 2020 Regulations apply to most private tenancies.
- Social landlords in England. Brought into scope from 1 November 2025, with full effect for pre-December 2025 tenancies from 1 May 2026.
- Not in scope: lodgers sharing with the landlord's family, long leases of 7 years or more, student halls, hostels and refuges, care homes, hospitals, mobile homes and boats.
- Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own regimes with different timescales. See the nations table further down.
What counts as a failed EICR?
A report is marked unsatisfactory if the inspector records any of the following. (If you're not sure what an EICR covers in the first place, start with our full guide.)
| Code | Meaning | Fails the report? | What you must do |
|---|---|---|---|
| C1 | Danger present. Risk of injury. Immediate action required | Yes | Immediate. The inspector should make it safe on the spot or isolate it before leaving |
| C2 | Potentially dangerous. Urgent remedial action required | Yes | Remedial work within 28 days, or sooner if the report specifies |
| FI | Further investigation required without delay | Yes | Investigation within 28 days, then any resulting remedial work |
| C3 | Improvement recommended | No | Nothing. It's advisory only. You may choose to act on it, but you are not required to |
That last row is the one landlords lose money on. A C3 is not a fail and does not require action. If a quote for remedial work includes C3 items, ask for them to be priced separately so you can decide.
The five deadlines, not one
Almost every guide tells you about the 28 days for remedial work. Regulation 3 actually imposes five separate duties, and missing any of them is a breach.
| Duty | Deadline | Regulation |
|---|---|---|
| Complete the remedial or further investigative work | 28 days from the inspection date, or less if the report specifies | reg 3(4) |
| Supply the report to each existing tenant | 28 days from the inspection | reg 3(3)(b) |
| Supply written confirmation of completed remedial work, with the report, to each existing tenant | 28 days from completion of the work | reg 3(5)(b) |
| Supply the same written confirmation and report to the local housing authority | 28 days from completion of the work | reg 3(5)(c) |
| Supply the report to the local housing authority on written request | 7 days from the request | reg 3(3)(c) |
| Supply the most recent report to a prospective tenant on written request | 28 days from the request | reg 3(3)(e)(ii) |
| Supply the most recent report to a new tenant | Before they occupy the premises. No 28-day period | reg 3(3)(e)(i) |
Note the 7-day one. It's the shortest deadline in the regulations and the one most likely to catch you out, because it starts when the council writes to you, not when you inspect.
And to be clear, supplying the existing report to a new tenant is not the same as commissioning a fresh inspection — for more on when a new report is actually needed, see do I need a new EICR every tenancy.
What happens step by step after a fail
- Read the codes, not the summary. Separate the C1s, C2s and FIs (which you must act on) from the C3s (which you needn't).
- Deal with any C1 immediately. A competent inspector should already have made it safe or isolated the circuit before leaving. If they didn't, that's a problem with the inspection, not just the installation.
- Get the remedial work quoted, ideally by more than one electrician. You are not obliged to use the company that carried out the inspection. Say so if there's pressure.
- Ask for the reason behind each C2, in writing. "The installation is old" is not a reason. Age alone doesn't justify a C2.
- Complete the work within 28 days of the inspection date, or sooner if the report specifies a shorter period.
- Get written confirmation from the electrician that the remedial work is complete and the installation now meets the standard — often issued as an Electrical Installation Certificate, which is a separate document from the EICR itself (see EICR vs Electrical Installation Certificate).
- Send that confirmation plus the report to your tenants and to the council within 28 days of completion.
- File everything. You must retain the report until the next inspection.
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Book your EICR from £67.99 →Do you have to rewire?
Almost never, and this is where landlords get overcharged most often.
A full rewire is a major job costing several thousand pounds. Most unsatisfactory EICRs are resolved with far less: a consumer unit upgrade, additional RCD protection, main protective bonding, replacing damaged accessories, or correcting a specific circuit.
Old wiring is not automatically unsafe. Grey PVC twin and earth cable from the 1970s and 80s is still perfectly serviceable in many installations, and its age alone doesn't warrant a C2.
If a rewire is recommended, ask for the specific defects that can't be remedied any other way, item by item. Then get a second opinion on the report itself, not just on the price. An independent domestic EICR re-check is a low-cost way to do that. You can book an EICR online without committing to any remedial work, and our full pricing is fixed and published upfront.
Can your tenants stay in the property?
In almost all cases, yes.
A C1 means an immediate danger exists at that point, and the inspector should isolate it there and then. That usually means one circuit or one accessory is out of use, not the whole property.
Only in rare cases (widespread C1s, no safe supply, or a property that can't be made safe) would occupation become an issue. If an electrician tells you the tenants have to move out, treat that as a claim to be verified before you act, not a fact.
What if you miss the 28 days?
The council can serve a remedial notice. Here's how that process runs.
| Stage | Timescale | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Remedial notice served | Day 0 | Requires the remedial action within 28 days beginning with the day of service (reg 4(2)(d)) |
| Written representations | 21 days from service | You can make written representations against the notice (reg 4(2)(e)). This suspends the notice while considered |
| Council arranges the work | After the notice period | With the tenant's consent, the authority may enter and carry out the remedial action itself (reg 6) |
| Cost recovery | By demand | The authority may recover costs reasonably incurred from you (reg 8). You have 21 days to appeal a costs demand (reg 9(2)) |
| Appeal to First-tier Tribunal | 28 days from service | Against the decision to arrange remedial action (reg 7(3)) |
| Urgent remedial action | Immediate | Where there's a risk of serious harm, the council can act first (reg 10). The 28-day appeal window then runs from the date the work started |
| Financial penalty | Any time | Up to £40,000. Multiple penalties are permitted for a continuing failure |
What if your tenant won't let anyone in?
This is a genuine defence, and it's written into the regulations, which surprises most landlords.
Regulations 3(2A) and 3(2B) provide that a landlord who has taken all reasonable steps to comply isn't in breach. And critically, a landlord is not treated as having failed to take all reasonable steps solely because they didn't bring legal proceedings to secure entry.
So you don't have to take your tenant to court. But you do have to be able to show the steps you took. Written requests, dates, delivery evidence, offered appointment slots, and a record of every attempt.
Our step-by-step guide to getting access when a tenant refuses includes letter templates and an evidence log.
Does a failed EICR stop you evicting a tenant?
Not any more, and this has changed recently enough that most content still gets it wrong.
Section 21 was abolished on 1 May 2026. The old "prescribed requirements" gateway under the Deregulation Act 2015, which made a section 21 notice invalid if certain documents hadn't been provided, went with it. Possession is now via section 8 only.
Deposit protection is still a precondition for a possession order in most cases. Safety certificates are not listed as one.
But that isn't good news. It means the consequence of non-compliance has shifted from "you can't evict" to "you get fined", and the fines went up. For many landlords the financial exposure is now higher than it used to be.
How the four UK nations differ
| Nation | Interval | Key difference |
|---|---|---|
| England | Max 5 years | Report to existing tenants within 28 days. Max penalty £40,000 |
| Wales | Max 5 years | Under the Renting Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) (Wales) Regulations 2022. Report to the contract-holder within 14 days, not 28. Failure means the dwelling is unfit for human habitation |
| Scotland | Max 5 years | Under the Repairing Standard. Also requires PAT testing of landlord-supplied portable appliances, which England does not |
| Northern Ireland | Max 5 years | Electrical Safety Standards for Private Tenancies Regulations (NI) 2024, in operation 1 April 2025. Existing tenancies had to comply by 1 December 2025. Enforcement is criminal (level 5 fine), not a civil penalty |
Sources
- Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020, reg 3 (inspection interval, the 28-day and 7-day duties, and the "all reasonable steps" defence at regs 3(2A) and 3(2B))
- Regulation 11 (£40,000 maximum penalty)
- SI 2025/1043, reg 10 (raised the cap from £30,000, in force 1 November 2025 for private landlords)
- gov.uk: Electrical safety standards in the private and social rented sectors guidance
- gov.uk: Repossessing your privately rented property after 1 May 2026 (section 21 abolition)
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About the author
My Landlord Certificate Compliance Team
This guide was written and fact-checked by the My Landlord Certificate compliance team and reviewed against current UK legislation by our NICEIC-approved, NAPIT-registered, Gas Safe registered, accredited DEA and NEBOSH-qualified engineers. We help landlords across all 33 London boroughs stay compliant with fixed-price EICR, Gas Safety (CP12), EPC, Fire Risk Assessment and PAT testing.