Unsatisfactory EICR? What C1, C2 and FI Codes Mean

Receiving an unsatisfactory EICR is unsettling, but it is not a disaster and it is far more common than most landlords expect. An unsatisfactory EICR simply means the electrician who tested your property found something in the fixed wiring that falls short of the current safety standard, and it now needs putting right within a defined window. This guide explains what the C1, C2, C3 and FI codes on your report actually mean, why three of them fail a report and one of them does not, and exactly what the law expects you to do next.

What an Unsatisfactory EICR Actually Means

An Electrical Installation Condition Report is a periodic inspection and test of the fixed electrical installation in a property: the consumer unit, the circuits, sockets, switches and lighting points, and the earthing and bonding arrangements. The inspector assesses everything against BS 7671, the UK wiring regulations, and records each departure from that standard as a coded observation.

On the front page of the report there is a single assessment box marked either SATISFACTORY or UNSATISFACTORY. An unsatisfactory EICR does not mean your property is uninhabitable, and it is not a judgement on you as a landlord. It means the installation, in the condition the inspector found it, cannot be certified as safe for continued use until specific work is carried out.

Under the Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020, private landlords in England must have the fixed installation inspected and tested at intervals of no more than five years, and must ensure it meets the standards in BS 7671. The duty applied to new tenancies from 1 July 2020 and to all existing tenancies from 1 April 2021. An unsatisfactory EICR is what triggers the further, time-limited duties set out below.

EICR Observation Codes: C1, C2, C3 and FI Explained

Every issue an inspector finds is given one of four classification codes. Understanding them is the difference between panicking about a report and dealing with it calmly, because the codes tell you both how urgent a problem is and whether it affects the overall outcome.

C1 — Danger Present, Risk of Injury

A C1 is the most serious code. It means someone could be hurt right now: exposed live conductors, a broken accessory with live parts accessible, or reversed polarity leaving metalwork live. A competent inspector should not simply write a C1 down and leave. They should make the situation safe on the day, usually by isolating the affected circuit or accessory, and tell you and the occupier immediately.

A single C1 produces an unsatisfactory EICR on its own, however good the rest of the installation is.

C2 — Potentially Dangerous

A C2 means there is no immediate danger, but the installation would become dangerous if a fault or a foreseeable event occurred. Common examples include no protective earth to metal accessories, missing main protective bonding to incoming gas or water services, a circuit with no residual current device where one is now required, or damaged cabling that has not yet reached live parts.

C2 items are the single most frequent cause of an unsatisfactory EICR in London's older housing stock, where installations have been extended piecemeal over decades. Like a C1, one C2 fails the report.

FI — Further Investigation Required

FI means the inspector found something they could not fully evaluate on the day and which may prove dangerous once opened up: concealed junction boxes, an unidentified circuit, an unexpected test reading, or wiring hidden behind fixed kitchen units. FI is not a soft code or a way of hedging. It flags something unresolved that could turn out to be a C1 or C2, so it also results in an unsatisfactory EICR.

An FI is cleared by an electrical fault-finding and diagnostic visit that traces the circuit properly, after which the finding is either resolved or reclassified.

C3 — Improvement Recommended

C3 is advisory. It flags something that does not comply with the current edition of BS 7671 but was acceptable when installed and is not dangerous now — a wooden consumer unit backboard, no RCD on a lighting circuit that was compliant at the time, or missing circuit identification labelling.

Crucially, C3 items alone will not give you an unsatisfactory EICR. A report can list a dozen C3 observations and still be signed off as satisfactory. They are worth addressing when convenient, and they often become C2 items at a future inspection as standards move on, but no statutory 28-day clock applies to them.

Why C1, C2 and FI Produce an Unsatisfactory EICR While C3 Does Not

The logic behind an unsatisfactory EICR is about risk, not tidiness. C1, C2 and FI all describe a present or unresolved danger. C3 describes a difference from today's standard that carries no danger. The table below summarises the outcome.

This is why two properties can receive very different verdicts from similar-looking lists of observations. If you are unsure why an item was coded the way it was, ask the inspector to explain the reasoning in writing. A good contractor will do that without hesitation, and it is far better than assuming an unsatisfactory EICR is unfair and doing nothing.

The 28-Day Rule After an Unsatisfactory EICR

The remedial window is the part of an unsatisfactory EICR that matters most legally. Where a report indicates that further investigative or remedial work is required, the landlord must ensure that work is carried out by a qualified person within 28 days of the inspection, or within any shorter period the report specifies.

Three points regularly catch landlords out:

• The clock starts at the inspection, not when you read the report. If the report lands in your inbox a week later, a quarter of the window has already gone.
• The inspector can shorten it. Where the report states that an item must be remedied sooner, that shorter period is the deadline.
• FI counts too. Further investigation must be completed within the same window, and if it reveals a C1 or C2 you then have to remedy that as well.

If a C1 was recorded, treat it as immediate regardless of the 28-day figure. The circuit should already have been isolated, and leaving a known danger in place while you gather quotes is not defensible. Where the consumer unit itself is the problem — common in properties still running rewireable fuses or early plastic boards with no RCD protection — a fuse box replacement often clears several C2 observations at once.

Getting Written Confirmation That the Remedial Work Is Complete

Completing the work is only half the job of clearing an unsatisfactory EICR. The Regulations require the landlord to obtain written confirmation from the qualified person who carried out the work, stating that the further investigative or remedial work has been completed and that either the installation now meets the required standard, or that further work is still needed.

An invoice is not written confirmation. Nor is a text message. What you want on file is one of the following:

• A signed completion letter or remedial works certificate referencing the original report and listing each observation cleared.
• A Minor Electrical Installation Works Certificate for smaller alterations such as replacing an accessory or adding earthing.
• An Electrical Installation Certificate where a new circuit or consumer unit has been installed.
• A fresh EICR marked satisfactory, where the extent of the work justifies retesting the whole installation.

Keep the original unsatisfactory EICR alongside the confirmation. Together they tell the whole story: what was found, what was done, and when. Councils and insurers will want both, and so will a buyer's solicitor if you ever sell.

Who Must Receive the Paperwork, and When

Once the work is signed off, the confirmation has to reach the right people. The duties under the 2020 Regulations are specific.

• Existing tenants: a copy of the report within 28 days of the inspection, and the written confirmation with a copy of the report within 28 days of the work finishing.
• The local housing authority: the written confirmation and a copy of the report within 28 days of completion. Councils can also request the report at any time, and you must supply it within 7 days of that request.
• New tenants: a copy of the current report before they occupy the property.
• Prospective tenants: a copy within 28 days of a written request.
• Your own records: retain the report until the next inspection is due, so the following inspector can see what was previously found.

Send everything by email so you have a timestamped trail — the paper trail is what actually closes out an unsatisfactory EICR. The government guidance for landlords, tenants and local authorities sets out these duties in full.

Common Reasons Landlords Get an Unsatisfactory EICR

Most failures fall into a short list of recurring problems, and most are avoidable with a little preparation before the inspector arrives.

Ageing consumer units and missing RCD protection

Rewireable fuse boards, and older boards with no residual current device covering socket circuits, are a leading source of C2 observations. Upgrading to a modern board with the correct protective devices usually resolves several at once.

Missing or undersized main protective bonding

Bonding conductors to incoming gas and water services are frequently absent in converted flats, or too small for the installation. This is a straightforward fix that often stands between a landlord and a satisfactory result.

DIY and unrecorded alterations

Extra sockets, garden supplies, loft lighting and kitchen spurs added without certification cause both C2 and FI codes, because the inspector cannot verify how they were installed.

Damage, damp and inaccessible areas

Cracked accessories, scorched terminals, water ingress at outdoor fittings and cables buried under loft insulation all attract codes. Where the inspector cannot reach a distribution board or loft hatch, expect limitations to be recorded and an FI to follow.

Practical steps before your next inspection

• Clear access to the consumer unit, loft hatch and any outbuilding supplies.
• Collect certificates for any work carried out since the last inspection.
• Book your EICR a couple of months before the current one expires, so remedial work does not run past the five-year deadline.
• For shops, offices and other business premises, arrange a commercial EICR around trading hours.

What Happens If You Ignore an Unsatisfactory EICR

Where a local housing authority has reasonable grounds to believe a landlord is in breach, it can serve a remedial notice requiring the work to be done, normally within 28 days. If the landlord does not comply, the authority may arrange the work itself, with the landlord's permission or that of the tenant, and recover its costs. The Regulations also allow a financial penalty of up to £30,000 for each breach.

The wider consequences matter just as much. Insurers ask about electrical compliance after a fire or an injury claim, and an ignored unsatisfactory EICR is difficult to explain. Tenants increasingly know their rights and will raise the report with the council themselves. Most importantly, the codes exist because the risk is real: the point of the exercise is a safe home, not a tidy filing cabinet.

The good news is that the overwhelming majority of unsatisfactory reports are resolved in a single follow-up visit. If your report has come back unsatisfactory, our London engineers can quote from the observation list, carry out the work and issue the written confirmation you need. Book an appointment online or contact the team on 0208 178 4580.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long do I have to fix an unsatisfactory EICR?

Twenty-eight days from the date of the inspection, unless the report specifies a shorter period for a particular item. Anything coded C1 should be made safe immediately rather than left for the full window.

Does a C3 code mean my EICR has failed?

No. C3 means improvement recommended and is advisory only. A report containing only C3 observations is still recorded as satisfactory, and no statutory remedial deadline applies.

Do I need a completely new EICR after the remedial work?

Not necessarily. Written confirmation from the qualified person that the work is complete and the installation now meets the standard is what the Regulations require. A full retest is sensible where the work was extensive, such as a rewire or a new consumer unit.

Can tenants be evicted or the property closed because of an unsatisfactory EICR?

An unsatisfactory EICR does not in itself close a property or end a tenancy. It obliges the landlord to carry out the required work within the deadline. Only a specific danger, such as an isolated live circuit, would affect the use of part of the installation in the meantime.

This article is general guidance on electrical safety compliance for landlords in England and is not legal advice. Rules change and local authority practice varies, so check the current position on GOV.UK or take professional advice on your own circumstances.