Side-stepping the building regs might save you some cash at the time, but you could knock thousands off the value of your home, find yourself living in a death-trap and facing a whopping fine.
By Chris Haslam
We've all heard the horror stories, load-bearing walls supported by two by fours and rewiring with sticky tape, but it's a whole lot easier than you think to break building regulations, however good your DIY skills are. All building work has to comply with some sort of regulation (part of the Building Act 1984) and there are 13 areas in all to watch out for from energy efficiency (Part L) to electrics (Part P). Here's a run down of what you need to know, what's best left to the pros and what you can (safely) try at home.
There are two types of building regulation:
Building notice is required for minor work such as relocating a bathroom. This will tell the building inspector what you're planning and they'll visit the site to ensure you are meeting regulations.
Major work such as a large extension is covered by a full plans application. Detailed plans must be submitted before work starts and will cover everything including site and fire safety. Once applications have been submitted, the local building inspector will make regular visits to check all is OK, they may also send a structural engineer along if you're working with load bearing walls.
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For more information contact your local council or visit www.communities.gov.uk
All new electrical work must comply with Part P. That said you can still do quite a lot of minor work yourself such as changing sockets, ceiling roses and replacing damaged cable. As a general rule if you're swapping 'like-for-like' you're fine to do it yourself unless it's in a kitchen, bathroom or outside.
Everything else is notifiable work and you'll need to contact your local building control officer so they can check the work. (Expect to pay around £130 for an inspection). You may not need to involve the council at all if you employ a registered installer who can self-certify their own work.
Check your electrician is registered by visiting: www.competentperson.co.uk or www.partp.co.uk
Once any work has been carried out your electrician must present you with a BS 7621 electrical safety certificate and you should be sent a Building Regulations compliance certificate.
If you're unqualified you can do notifiable work, but you will need to get it inspected before it meets regulations - failure to do so could land you with a £5,000 fine.
Our advice? Electrics are not to be messed with by amateurs - get a competent pro in to do it for you. For more details contact the National Inspection Council for Electrical Installation www.niceic.org.uk, or in Scotland, www.select.org.uk.
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