Durham · England
PAT Testing in Durham
One short form, and your PAT Testing in Durham is in hand — correctly registered professionals, honest pricing guidance, and your certificate stored with its renewal date.
Straight answer
PAT testing checks the plug-in appliances a landlord supplies — kettles, white goods, lamps, extension leads — with a visual inspection plus instrument tests. There's no blanket legal interval in England and Wales; the duty is that supplied equipment is safe, and testing is the standard evidence. HMO licences in Durham commonly require it on a set cycle.
Booking
How it works
We're building coverage in Durham through our national onboarding programme, and we won't pretend otherwise with a fake availability calendar. Send the property details and we'll confirm by email whether we can cover the job, and the price, before anything is committed.
The inspection
What the tester actually checks
Expect the tester to work through the inventory: visual inspection of plug, fuse rating, cable and casing, then meter tests suited to each class of appliance. New items may be logged with a visual check only and picked up on the next cycle. The output is the labelled items plus the register — your evidence, so keep it with the tenancy file.
Pricing
What PAT testing costs
Two pricing traps to avoid: per-item headline rates that hide a high minimum, and 'free retest' offers priced into inflated failures. We quote the visit and the count up front, and failures are recorded honestly — replacement advice, not a repair upsell.
The local picture
Letting in Durham: the practical points
Nothing about appliance safety changes in Durham; what changes is the paperwork context. Durham County Council sets HMO licence conditions locally, and testing supplied appliances on a stated cycle is among the most common. For single lets, the register is simply the cheapest insurance-grade evidence you can hold.
Credentials
Who you're letting in
A meaningful PAT visit leaves evidence: labelled items, a per-item register, tester identity, instrument details. If a quote can't describe that output, it's a sticker service, not a safety check. Competence, calibration and insurance are our three checks before any booking.
The law
Why PAT Testing matters for Durham landlords
There's no statute that says 'PAT test every year'. In England and Wales the law requires electrical equipment you supply to be safe, and PAT is the recognised way to evidence it. Scotland's Repairing Standard requires landlord-supplied appliances to be regularly checked. HMO licences from Durham County Council frequently make testing an explicit condition.
There is no blanket law that says rented homes must be PAT tested. What the law does require is that any electrical appliances the landlord supplies are safe — PAT testing is the standard practical way to evidence that, and it is frequently a condition of HMO licences.
The 5-yearly electrical safety inspection must include appliances provided by the landlord, so appliance testing is effectively part of the statutory regime in Scotland.
Penalties stated are statutory maximums or court-set; Durham County Council is the local housing authority for Durham.
FAQ
Common questions about the PAT test record / register
How long does PAT testing take?
Only a few minutes per appliance — a typical furnished rental with ten to twenty items is usually completed within an hour, making it easy to combine with other visits such as an EICR or inventory.
Is PAT testing the same as an EICR?
No. The EICR inspects the fixed wiring of the building; PAT covers plug-in appliances. A rental in Durham with landlord-supplied appliances is fully evidenced by having both: EICR for the installation, PAT records for the appliances.
Who can carry out PAT testing?
A competent person with the right training and calibrated test equipment. It does not require a full electrician's qualification, though many landlords use an electrician or specialist test company so the paperwork is professionally recorded.
Is PAT testing a legal requirement for landlords in Durham?
There is no blanket statutory PAT interval for private rentals in England and Wales — the duty is to ensure any electrical equipment you supply is safe, and PAT testing is the standard way to evidence that. Scotland requires appliances provided by the landlord to be regularly checked under the Repairing Standard, and HMO licences across the UK frequently require PAT as a condition.
My Durham let is unfurnished — do I need PAT testing?
If you supply no electrical appliances at all, there is nothing to test. Any item you do leave — even a single fridge or lamp — is equipment you supplied, and testing it is the sensible way to show it was safe.
Nearby
Letting elsewhere close by? See: Sunderland · all of County Durham & Tees Valley
Tell us the postcode and what needs certifying; we'll handle the rest and keep the renewal on our calendar, not just yours. Get availability by email
Sorting your PAT Testing in Durham?
Tell us the property and we'll confirm coverage and price by email before anything is committed.