Why do we take risks when buying our largest asset?

I recently bought a second hand car, and was struck by an unusual phenomenon. Why do certain second hand asset purchases (like a car) come with a safety report yet other second hand asset purchases (houses) do not? Why aren’t we as concerned about safety in the home as we are about safety in a car?

UK law doesn’t require any safety report in a second hand car purchase, and yet the market has evolved to offer it (dealerships offer a mechanics report, driving organisations such as the AA offer to “look under the bonnet” before you buy the car etc). A house purchase typically involves a much larger sum of money than a car, and yet something in the market means that such a service is not offered. Why, when there is more money at stake buying houses, are we prepared to accept greater risk?

As an electrical contractor specialising in safety inspection, I was impressed that the second hand car sales process included a mechanic’s report to show that the car had been tested and inspected. It was reassuring. But it made me think how comparatively few calls we get for our pre-purchase house inspections. I know from experience that many “second hand” houses in my area are in an appalling electrical condition. If a second hand car had as many faults, it would be condemned.  So why do we turn a blind eye to such danger in houses?

Despite the comparatively strong safety record of electricity, electrical fault is still the second most common cause of fire (ROSPA). The materials used in electrical installations deteriorate over time, just like car parts. Electrical safety technology evolves just as fast as technology in auto-manufacture. Inheriting poor quality DIY is also a major threat.  Significantly, the costs of electrical failure far outweigh the costs of a precautionary report.

UK consumers are, typically, unaware of the benefits of a pre-purchase electrical safety report because of habit and tradition.  In addition, market forces often result in people being too frightened of “losing” a dream house in a competitive situation to worry about safety precautions. However, a “cooling” market might just be the right time for the “market” to discover the benefits of a pre-purchase inspection.

Ultimately the benefits of a pre-purchase electrical safety inspection are peace of mind, time and cost savings (potentially for both parties if a sale completes without delay) and the removal of moral hazard (how should society treat the DIY-er whose botched job results in death at a later date?)

Recently the Government has tried to incorporate some element of electrical safety inspection in the HIP pack, but were dissuaded by the property industry complaints of stealth taxation! Even though companies like mine would have benefited from this, I agree that the solution is not to make another law.

Currently the state of domestic electrical safety in Britain’s second hand houses is poor, and this “costs” the Government and the Insurance Industry. It also costs lives. For this situation to improve, buyers and sellers (and estate agents!!) must start to consider an electrical safety report as they might consider a new kitchen or a lick of paint. In other words something that can make a sale “happen”.  Full disclosure would move a market faster than any law, and it would also save society a considerable cost.

What is earthing and bonding?

What is Earthing and Bonding?

Earthing is the (electrical) connection of conductive parts of an electrical appliance (the exposed metallic bits that can “conduct” electricity!) to the main earth terminal of an installation.

Bonding is the cross-connection of all extraneous metallic parts of an installation (eg water pipes, gas pipes, steel girders etc) in order that all of these conductive parts are substantially the same “potential” (voltage) as the exposed metallic parts of any appliances.

The point of Earthing and Bonding is to prevent injury in the instance of a fault with any electrical appliances or with the electrical wiring. Should a fault occur, electricity will flow along the path of least resistance which could mean it passes to earth through a human. When electricity flows to the ground (earth) it dissipates (mostly in a harmless manner). However if a person comes between the electrical fault (leakage) and the earth, then that person is in danger of electric shock or electrocution.

Normally a modern electrical installation will have an earth terminal, and incorporate earth wires to direct the passage of electricity, harmlessly, to earth. However, whenever a fault occurs, these features can be made redundant.  A wiring fault might occur for a number of reasons, including extremes of temperature, moisture, friction or rodent activity. Very often wires and metallic (conductive) pipework are found side by side in a property, which means regular checks of wiring health and modern safety features are vitally important.

Happily this is not the place for a physics lesson, but suffice to say, electricity in metallic objects flows from “lower” to “higher” potential. If you are simultaneoulsy touching two metallic objects (oven and sink), and one of which is “live” through electrical fault, then you are at risk of electrical shock. However if all of the conductive pipework and appliances in the property are earthed and bonded, so as to create a substantially equal potential, then the risk of injury or death is reduced.

Given the age of some houses and their electrical installations, the chances of such fault conditions cannot be overlooked. Regular, periodic inspections are encouraged in order to minimise the risk of injury or death.  In fact, so important is the need to maintain earthing and bonding provision, that any electrician you might employ is required by safety regulations to check, and where necessary update, the installation.  This applies even if your instructions are for the electrician to work on an entirely different aspect of your property. Be aware!

The 1-2-3 of electrical safety

As a Portable Appliance Testing company, we often meet customers who don’t appreciate how easily electrical equipment can become dangerous. In face of numerous pieces of legislation, regulation and recommendation, much of it frustratingly opaque, customers don’t always have the patience to consider the sort of basic care that the regulators are trying to promote.

For example, many customers want to know the bare-minimum “legally required” interval for testing appliances. The law doesn’t state a rigid timescale for testing, but “recommendations” for testing intervals do exist. We consider that a more pressing point is that testing and ongoing care are not the same thing. Just as it makes sense to check oil levels and tyre pressure for a car in between services, so it also makes sense to monitor electrical equipment between formal inspections. The IET recommendations (The Institution of Engineering and Technology) are made on the understanding that ongoing user checks are completed.  

Here are three easy ways to look after your electrical appliances (the list is not meant to be exhaustive!)

1 – Check the fuse – A fuse is a safety feature designed to be the weakest link in a safe chain.  If a fuse “goes pop”, then it has done its job (to highlight a fault and prevent damage to the equipment). If the incorrect size (or rating) of fuse is installed, then a greater amount of time will elapse between the fault and the safety “pop”.  In this interval great damage can be done (overheating, equipment damage and fire). Because cables and leads are inter-changeable it is especially important to check the correct fuse is installed in every appliance. Typically, anything with a heating element (kettle, heater etc) should have a higher rated fuse (13amp), and anything which draws less power (desk lamp, TV) would require a lesser rated fuse (perhaps 3 or 5 amp respectively). Always check which fuse rating, measured in amps, is most appropriate for the appliance. This information should be listed on the equipment itself. 

2 – Love your cables – In our experience, cables are the part of an electrical appliance most likely to breakdown. The causes for this are often very easy to avoid. Excessive coiling, stretching or bending of cables can result in an increased risk of fire (coiled cables can be hot to the touch) or in electric shock where the protective insulation breaks down. In addition, very often people rest heavy furniture on cables or else repeatedly run wheeled chairs over cable. In each instance this increases the chances of insulation failure. You should aim to keep your cables tidy, hanging loose and out of the way (imagine the embarrassment if you were the person in the office to break something in a trip over a cable!?)

3 – Don’t overload sockets – A standard UK socket is designed to bear an electrical load in the region of 13 amps. This equates to a single appliance with a heating element (such as a kettle or heater), or perhaps one extension with a couple of 5 amp pieces of IT equipment. However, due to the age of some electrical installations, and the increased reliance on electrical equipment, many properties do not have sufficient sockets for modern demand. Overloading sockets can be very dangerous (overheating causes fires). The worst we have seen was a company that had 78 appliances “daisy-chained” via extension adaptors through a double socket. YIKES! This is a far greater load than the adaptor equipment or the mains wiring is designed to bear. Overloading increases the risk of fire, the risk of having to pay lots of money to replace equipment, as well as the risk of disruption to a business (it’s always the sockets with vital computer equipment that tend to get overloaded!) Extra sockets are not, in the scheme of things, a great cost. Especially when compared to the worst-case alternative.

Please email if you’d like more information on this matter (info@lsc-electrical.co.uk)