How to File an EICR So You Can Produce the Report, Remedials and Proof You Sent It

A Friday council email for the electrical safety report usually finds an invoice and a WhatsApp screenshot, not the PDF. Save the full current report the day it arrives, copy the printed next-due date, send it on the 28-day or before-occupation clock, and keep the sent proof. If the report failed, keep the fail plus Minor Works or an EIC.

Sunday. Neil’s two-flat terrace in Sheffield. Last year the electrician WhatsApped “all good”, a photo of page one, and an invoice. Neil filed the invoice under “certs” and guessed next year as inspection-plus-five. Friday a council officer asked for the report. The risk is the full PDF is not on the laptop. Last year’s Unsatisfactory vanished after a socket was changed. In practice, having an EICR is not the file.

Disclaimer: IziRento is operations software, not legal advice. Local tenancy rules vary; check a qualified adviser for binding decisions.

What to keep in the current EICR file?

The file is the complete written report that gives the result, any observations, and the next-inspection date. An invoice, a “satisfactory” screenshot, or a WhatsApp “all good” is not that report. Save the full PDF the day it arrives, named with address and inspection date.

An Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR) is a full report on the fixed installation — wiring, consumer unit, sockets, lights — not plug-in appliances. NICEIC: fixed wiring, not the kettle. A meter-face photo is a different file: meter readings at handover.

England landlords must obtain a written report that gives the results and sets a date for the next inspection and test. GOV.UK (1 November 2025) makes that report the thing you keep, not a verbal pass. Check the address on the cover. A typical mistake is saving “EICR.pdf” with no address. A new-build Electrical Installation Certificate (EIC) can stand as the current report for five years if other duties are met. Do save the complete PDF the day it arrives. Do not file the invoice as the cert.

Where do you read the next inspection date?

Copy the next-inspection date printed on the report. Do not add five years in your head. Five years is a ceiling, not a default anniversary. The inspector can set a shorter interval. Put that date in the folder and set a reminder from the paper.

The report must include satisfactory or unsatisfactory, any observations that need work or further investigation, and the date the next inspection is due. NRLA (29 April 2026): that date cannot be longer than five years and may be shorter. For example, a March 2026 report can say the next test is due in 2028. Do write the printed date the same day. If access was refused, keep the email thread; GOV.UK treats those copies as evidence of reasonable steps.

When to send the tenant a copy — and what counts as proof?

Existing tenants get a copy within 28 days of the inspection and test. The clock starts on test day, not the day you forward the PDF. A new tenant gets the most recent report before they occupy. A prospective tenant who asks in writing gets a copy within 28 days of the request.

The same clocks sit in statute. Regulation 3 of SI 2020/312 restates those clocks. Proof is the named PDF plus a sent email, a portal log, or a dated hand-delivery note. CertNudge (17 July 2026): the 28 days run from the test date, not the day you forward the file. Name the PDF with address and inspection date.

For a new tenancy, drop the current PDF into the day-one pack — the tenant welcome pack — before keys leave the table. You do not need a new EICR at every re-let if the current report is in date and has no open remedial work. You still give the most recent copy before they occupy. Do send on the statutory clock, then file the sent proof.

What do you keep if the report is unsatisfactory?

C1, C2 or FI (further investigation) makes the report unsatisfactory. C3 alone is satisfactory; improvement is recommended, not a mandatory remedial pack. Do not delete the fail once a socket is changed. Keep fail, quote, and written confirmation in one folder.

Complete further investigation or remedial work within 28 days — or sooner if the report says so — starting from the inspection date. NRLA: do not delete the fail; send it with the confirmation. Then obtain written confirmation from a qualified person. GOV.UK accepts a later satisfactory EICR, an EIC, a Minor Works certificate (MEIWC), or other appropriate certification. Send confirmation plus the report that required the work to existing tenants and the council within 28 days of completion. Do keep fail + quote + confirmation together. Do not hide the Unsatisfactory.

How do you answer a seven-day council request?

If the local council asks in writing, supply the most recent report for that address within seven days. That is not the tenant’s 28-day window. Keep the request and your sent reply with the PDF. A missing file is what the officer is asking for — councils may impose a civil penalty of up to £40,000.

Send the correct address, not an older PDF from the other flat. CertNudge proof checklist: named PDF, sent log, council request and reply. A Friday request expects the PDF already to hand. Do reply with the current named PDF. Do not treat a council letter as a reminder to start looking.

How do you attach the last report when you book the next electrician?

When you book the next test, attach the last report and save that sent message. The duty is to supply a copy to the next inspector, not only to tenants. A PAT sheet — a portable-appliance test record — is a different file.

Retain a copy until the next inspection and test is required or, if later, conducted, unless a newer report supersedes it. GOV.UK: hand that last report to the next inspector. England private-rented rules do not treat a PAT sheet as this file. Other UK nations differ.

Success bar: named full PDF; next-due from the report; send-proof on the 28-day or before-keys clock; fail + confirmation if unsatisfactory; last report on the next booking. Verify that list.

Full PDF → printed next-due → send on the clock → keep proof → fail + confirmation → last report on the next booking

A workspace that keeps the lease and the inspection PDF in one place can replace a WhatsApp invoice plus a camera-roll screenshot.