What to do if you spot an electrical hazard, how to keep your home safe and what we do to keep you safe.
If you spot an electrical hazard
If you notice any electrical damage or faults, report it straight away.
Don't try to fix electrical faults yourself.
Report an electrical hazard
- Use our report a repair form
- Call 0117 922 2200
Reduce electrical hazards in your home
There are some simple things you can do at home to keep you and your family safe.
- Make sure all electrical appliances and equipment are regularly checked and tested.
- Switch off any appliances when they're not being used and pull out any plugs.
- Never take electrical items into the bathroom.
- Don't overload sockets by plugging too many appliances in.
- Make sure the correct size fuses are fitted in plugs for the appliance you're using.
- Don't touch electrical appliances with wet hands.
- Learn how your fuse box works.
- Keep sockets safe from children by fitting socket covers.
- If you're using a portable heater, keep this away from any other material such as curtains or furniture.
- Regularly check sockets, switches and light fittings for damage, such as cracking or burn marks.
- Regularly check appliance leads for fraying and damage.
- Check your smoke detectors every month.
- Check that your RCDs are working correctly every three months.
Press the test button on each RCD (if present)
If the RCD is working correctly, this will trip the circuit. You'll need to reset your switch back into the on position afterwards.
What we do to keep you safe
We test and inspect the electrics in your home every 10 years. We're moving to a 5-year testing cycle.
During an inspection, we carry out an Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR) to:
- check the safety of your home's electrical systems, including wiring, consumer units and fire detection.
- identify any hazards and confirm everything is safe
The engineer will need access to all electrical points. An EICR can take up to 3 hours.
If you need any repairs, we may do them immediately, or within 28 days.
We have a legal duty to maintain electrical installations and make sure they're safe. We'll always contact you to arrange the checks. You must allow us access to carry out our checks, or we may take legal action.
Contact
- General enquiries: 0117 922 2200 (option 1)
- Textphone: 0117 922 3892
- Out of hours emergencies: 0117 922 2050
- Visit us: Citizen Service Point. 100 Temple Street, Bristol, BS1 6AG.
- Make a complaint or give feedback
Electrical safety policy
The pdf Electrical safety policy(328 KB) sets out how we meet our legal and regulatory duties as a landlord for testing, maintaining and installing electrical wiring, equipment and appliances.