Twelve red flags of a box-ticking EICR

A genuine periodic inspection isolates every circuit and tests it. A rubber stamp photographs the consumer unit and invents the rest. Here is how to tell them apart — before you rely on the report.

On the schedule of test results

1. Identical Z_s on every circuit. Different cable runs give different readings; a schedule where all circuits share one value (usually just Z_e) means the column was filled at the origin, not per circuit.
2. No insulation resistance values. Dead testing requires every circuit to be isolated; if IR columns are blank or all show a generic ">200 MΩ", the dead tests were skipped.
3. No RCD operating times. A 30 mA RCD must be tested at I_Δn with the time recorded. "RCD: Yes/No" without times is an incomplete test.
4. No schedule at all. The BS 7671 EICR pack includes the Schedule of Test Results / Circuit Details. "Report only" means the test evidence doesn't exist.
5. Instrument details missing. The form asks for test instrument serial/asset numbers — calibrated instruments are traceable; nothing to write means nothing was used.

In the report body

6. "Satisfactory" with C2s listed. Any C1, C2 or FI makes the overall assessment UNSATISFACTORY — by definition. This error alone should end your trust in the report.
7. Observations without locations. "Damaged socket — C2" without a room means nobody wrote it down on site.
8. Copy-paste text across properties. If you manage several lets and the observations are word-for-word identical, you're reading a template, not a survey.
9. No extent/limitations statement. Section D must state what was covered and what wasn't (and agree it with the person ordering). Blank or boilerplate limitations hide unfloored lofts and inaccessible boards.
10. No next-inspection date. Section F left as "valid until change of tenancy" or blank — see why that wording is wrong.

On the day

11. Impossibly short visit. A 2–3 bed house takes ~2–4 hours: dead tests alone mean isolating each circuit, then live tests, RCD times, inspection of accessories, loft, and earth arrangements. Ask what the quote's visit duration covers — a half-day booking that ends in 45 minutes produced nothing defensible. r/ukelectricians is full of landlords describing exactly this.
12. Power left off "temporarily". If dead testing happened, your power was off for a chunk of the visit. A full set of results with zero downtime means the results weren't taken from your installation.

What a proper report looks like

• Per-circuit rows with your measured values — Z_s varying by circuit, IR per circuit, RCD times per protective device, and the tabulated maximum Z_s for each breaker.
• Coded observations with locations and a recommendation line for each.
• A Section F date, not an open-ended condition.
• Instruments with serial numbers, and a name + registration body in Section G that you can look up.