SAFE ELECTRIC
Always use a Registered Electrical Contractor of Ireland (RECI) to carry out electrical work in your home
Remember not all cowboys ride horses and when it comes to getting any kind of electrical work done in your home or business, it is vitally important to use a registered electrical contractor and to ask for a completion certificate when the job is done.
If you don’t, you are putting yourself and your property at risk with dodgy electrical work and the unregistered person carrying out the work is breaking the law.
Unsafe electrical wiring is a notorious fire hazard so why risk your home and possibly your life?.
You may have problems selling your house if you can’t provide the relevant certificates for new wiring or new electrical installations.
If you have unsafe work carried out, you may have to shell out even more cash to have it rectified.
Safe Electric is the regulatory scheme for electrical contractors, operated by the Register of Electrical Contractors of Ireland (RECI) on behalf of the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU).
RECI was appointed as a Safety Supervisory Body by the CRU and operates on a not-for-profit basis under the Safe Electric brand.
It is the role of Safe Electric to ensure that all registered electrical contractors operate to the required national standards and technical rules. This includes inspecting their work on an ongoing basis and carrying out disciplinary actions where necessary.
RECI carefully scrutinises an electrician’s work prior to certifying them, regularly checks their work is up to standard and imposes penalties if it is not.
The scheme ensures that all electrical installations in the Republic of Ireland are carried out by competent electrical contractors.
A list of Safe Electric registered contractors in County Wexford is available on the website. However, enrolment in the online register is not compulsory and if a particular contractor is not on it, you can contact Safe Electric at 01 4929966 to verify whether they are currently registered.
The Electricity Regulation Act 1999, makes is mandatory for a registered electrical contractor to issue a completion certificate for all electrical works (excluding minor works).
Customers should always ask for a certificate for all electrical works completed in their home immediately after the job is finished. The certificate should include post-connection tests.
If you have not received a completion certificate and the contractor is refusing to give you one, you can submit a complaint through Safe Electric.
Equally, you can make a complaint if you have concerns about the technical and safety standard of work carried out.
Please not that Safe Electric is only concerned with electrical safety and doesn’t have a role in disputes of a commercial nature or the performance of a lighting installation, for example.
It also only deals with complaints related to Registered Electrical Contractors.
The CRU and Safe Electric take legal action against unregistered contractors. The first prosecution of a person for carrying out electrical work without being registered was in 2016. The maximum fine for such an offence is €15,000 and up to three years in prison.
Electrical installations can deteriorate with age and it is recommended that they are inspected and tested periodically.
Remember you are entitled to ask any contractor undertaking work on your property for proof of Safe Electric membership.