EICRs for rented flats in Hackney

Why Hackney EICRs are a little different

Hackney is a borough of flats. The VOA Council Tax stock of properties 2025 shows 81.9% of Hackney homes are flats or maisonettes, the highest share of any area we cover, and 29.4% were built before 1900. A large part of the private rental stock is Victorian terraces in De Beauvoir, Dalston, Clapton and Stoke Newington that were split into two, three or four flats, plus purpose built blocks, ex council flats and warehouse conversions around Hackney Wick.

Each of those building types throws up its own EICR questions. The legal rule is the same for all of them.

The legal rule

Under the regulations explained in the government’s electrical safety guidance, landlords in England must:

• have the fixed electrical installation inspected and tested by a qualified person at least every 5 years
• give existing tenants a copy within 28 days, new tenants before they move in, and the council a copy within 7 days of a request
• complete remedial or further investigation work within 28 days, or sooner if the report says
• send written confirmation of completed work to the tenant and the council within 28 days of finishing it

Councils can impose penalties of up to £40,000. Since 2025 the same rules cover social housing too. Our landlord EICR rules guide sets out every deadline.

Converted Victorian terraces

A typical Hackney conversion has a meter cupboard in the ground floor hall with two or three meters in a row, and meter tails (the thick cables from meter to consumer unit) running up through the building to each flat. The original house wiring is long gone, but the conversion wiring could be from any decade.

Things inspectors often need to check in these houses:

Issue	Why it matters
Meter tails running through common parts	They belong to each flat’s installation and must be protected and supported properly
Earthing arrangement	Each flat needs a sound connection to the main earth, usually at the meter position
Bonding to water and gas pipes	Pipes may enter in the basement or ground floor flat, not the flat being tested
Cables passing through other flats	Older conversions sometimes have one flat’s lighting in another flat’s ceiling
Old cable in a top floor flat	Lofts in converted houses can hide earlier wiring, including black rubber cable phased out in the 1960s, per Electrical Safety First

The practical point for landlords: get the keys to the meter cupboard and any shared loft before the visit, and tell the freeholder or managing agent if access through another flat might be needed.

The landlord supply

Most converted houses and blocks have a separate supply for the hall lights, stair lights, door entry and sometimes a fire alarm. This is often called the landlord supply, communal supply or “landlord’s meter”. It is not part of any single flat’s EICR.

If you own the freehold as well as the flat, that communal installation is yours to look after. If you own one flat on a leasehold, it is usually the freeholder’s or managing agent’s job. Ask for their latest report. If the hall lights go off but your flat still has power, or the other way round, see no power in your flat but the hallway lights are on.

HMOs and AFDDs

Hackney has many shared houses let by the room. Under BS 7671 Amendment 4, arc fault detection devices (AFDDs) are required on socket circuits rated up to 32A in houses in multiple occupation, as well as in high rise residential buildings, care homes and purpose built student accommodation. An AFDD watches for the electrical signature of arcing, which is sparking at a loose or damaged connection, and cuts the power.

That requirement applies to new work. An EICR on an older HMO without AFDDs will not automatically fail for that reason, but if you are replacing the consumer unit or adding socket circuits, budget for AFDDs. Our post on AFDDs in London flats and HMOs explains more. HMOs may also have licence conditions set by Hackney Council, so check your licence.

Ex council and purpose built blocks

In blocks, each flat’s supply usually comes from a riser, the vertical cable route that carries power up the building, to a meter in the flat or on the landing. Who owns the riser varies. In newer blocks UK Power Networks guidance puts the rising and lateral mains with a building network operator. In older blocks it may be the network or the building owner. Either way, the EICR starts at the flat’s meter. Anything before that is not part of the report.

Making the inspection go smoothly

1. Give the tenant notice that power will be off for spells during the visit.
2. Arrange access to every room, the meter cupboard and any loft.
3. Have the previous EICR and any recent work certificates to hand.
4. Tell the inspector if the flat is part of an HMO.
5. Ask for a full schedule of test results with the report, and check it is to Amendment 4.

Ask any electrician you use for their competent person scheme registration and check it on the scheme’s online register, especially if the repairs include a new consumer unit, which is notifiable under Part P.

After the report

If it is satisfactory, send the tenant a copy and file the next due date. If it is unsatisfactory, book the repairs straight away: our EICR page explains how inspections and repairs are priced, and the Hackney area page covers common electrical faults in the borough’s older flats.