Why use a registered electrician?
The UK has a comparatively good record of electrical safety, although there are over 30 deaths and nearly 4,000 injuries from electrical accidents and the 7909 fires that occur in the home each year.
Although many incidents are caused by faulty appliances rather than the electrical installation itself, a properly-installed and well-maintained installation could save lives.
It is important therefore that electrical installation work is carried out only by persons who are competent. Such persons are those that have the necessary knowledge, skill and experience to enable them to avoid dangers to themselves and others that electricity can create. It's easy to make an electrical circuit work - it's far harder to make the circuit work safely.
Safety for you in your home is paramount and therefore the Electrical Safety Council strongly recommends that you use an electrician registered with one of the government-approved schemes to carry out any electrical installation work you need done.
Registered electricians will work to the UK national standard, BS 7671, and will issue a safety certificate for their electrical work to confirm that the installation has been designed, constructed, and inspected and tested in accordance with the national electrical safety standard, BS 7671 - Requirements for Electrical Installations.
All of the scheme operators will have a complaints procedure whereby they investigate complaints about registered electricians that may not have complied with the appropriate technical standard.
Source of statistics relating to accidental primary fires in domestic dwellings:
- Fire Statistics, United Kingdom, 2005, published by ODPM, UK
- Statistics Office, ODPM, UK
Sources of statistics relating to exposure to electric current:
- Office for National Statistics (England & Wales); General Register Office for Scotland; and Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency
- Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA), UK
