What is an ISIT record?

It is the record a registered provider must obtain after each check of an item of electrical equipment it supplies, giving the results and, if the item is safe for continued use, the date the next check is due (regulations 3A and 3C).

How often must social landlords check electrical equipment?

At intervals of no more than 5 years, or sooner if the latest ISIT record requires it, and before a new tenancy starts (regulation 3B).

When is the deadline for existing social tenancies?

For tenancies granted before 1 December 2025, the installation inspection and the equipment checks are due before 1 November 2026 (regulation 3E).

What is the penalty for not complying?

A local housing authority satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that a landlord has breached a duty under regulation 3, 3B, 3C or 3D can impose a financial penalty of up to £40,000, and more than one penalty for a continuing failure (regulation 11). The 2025 amending regulations raised the maximum from £30,000.

Does this apply in Wales or Scotland?

No. These regulations apply in England only. Wales and Scotland have their own rules for rented homes.

LANDLORD RULES

Social housing electrical safety: EICRs and ISIT records

The 2020 electrical safety regulations for rented homes in England now cover social housing. Registered providers must have each installation inspected and tested at least every five years, and must also have the electrical equipment they provide checked and recorded on an ISIT record.

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7 min readUpdated 2026-10-28Andrew Moore, Founder of Elec-Mate

Written and reviewed by Andrew Moore, founder of Elec-Mate, against BS 7671:2018+A4:2026, IET Guidance Note 3 and the IET On-Site Guide.

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The short answer

Do social landlords need an EICR?

Yes. The Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector and Social Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020 now apply to registered providers of social housing. The installation must be inspected and tested at least every 5 years and before a tenancy starts, and equipment the landlord provides must be checked at least every 5 years. For tenancies granted before 1 December 2025, both are due by 1 November 2026.

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Key takeaways

01The regulations are now titled the Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector and Social Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020, and apply in England only.
02Registered providers of social housing have the same installation duties as private landlords: inspection and testing by a qualified person at least every 5 years and before a tenancy starts, with the report given to tenants within 28 days (regulation 3).
03They must also have each item of electrical equipment they provide checked by a qualified person at least every 5 years and before a tenancy starts, recorded on an ISIT record (regulations 3B and 3C).
04Equipment found not safe for continued use must be made safe or replaced within 28 days, and the tenant told immediately (regulation 3C).
05For social tenancies granted before 1 December 2025, the installation inspection and the equipment checks are due before 1 November 2026 (regulation 3E).
06A landlord is not in breach if they took all reasonable steps, and being refused entry by a tenant does not on its own mean they had to go to court (regulation 3(2A) and (2B)).

01 · Landlord Rules

Who the rules apply to

Regulation 3 applies to any landlord who grants or intends to grant a specified tenancy: a tenancy of residential premises in England, occupied as someone's only or main residence, for rent (whether or not a market rent), and not excluded by Schedule 1. Regulations 3A to 3E add duties for registered providers of social housing.

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02 · Landlord Rules

The installation: inspection and testing

Electrical safety standards (BS 7671:2018) must be met while the premises are occupied.
Every installation must be inspected and tested by a qualified person at intervals of no more than 5 years, or sooner if the last report says so, and before a specified tenancy starts.
The landlord must give a copy of the report to each existing tenant within 28 days, to a new tenant before they move in, to a prospective tenant within 28 days of a written request, and to the local housing authority within 7 days of a written request.
The report must be kept until the next inspection is due or done, and passed to the person doing the next inspection.
For a registered provider that supplies equipment, the report must also say whether the checks of each identified item of that equipment are up to date (regulation 3(3)(a)(ii)).
Further investigative or remedial work must be done within 28 days, or sooner if the report says so, and written confirmation given to the tenants and the local housing authority within 28 days of completion.

03 · Landlord Rules

Electrical equipment: checks and ISIT records

Electrical equipment means electrical fixtures, fittings and appliances that are not part of the electrical installation. Relevant equipment is the equipment a registered provider supplies under the tenancy.

Each item must be safe for continued use while the home is occupied (regulation 3B(1)(a)).
Each item must be checked by a qualified person at least every 5 years, or sooner if the last ISIT record says so, and before a tenancy starts (regulation 3B).
A check is whatever visual inspection or testing (or both) the qualified person considers necessary to decide whether the item is safe for continued use.
After each check the provider must obtain a record (the ISIT record) giving the results and, if the item is safe, the date the next check is due (regulation 3C(1)).
If an item is not safe, the tenant must be told immediately, and the item made safe by a qualified person or replaced within 28 days of the check (regulation 3C(2) and (3)), with a new record confirming it is safe.
ISIT records must be kept, passed to the person doing the next check or the remedial work, given to the person doing the installation inspection, and supplied to the local housing authority when required (regulation 3D).

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04 · Landlord Rules

The 1 November 2026 deadline

Tenancies granted before 1 December 2025

Regulation 3E covers social tenancies granted before 1 December 2025. For those homes, the inspection and test that would otherwise be due before the tenancy started, and the equipment checks that would be due before the tenancy started, must instead be done before 1 November 2026.

05 · Landlord Rules

What this means for electricians

Housing providers need inspection capacity for both the installation and the equipment they supply, and a record of each item's next check date.
Ask the provider for the list of relevant equipment and the latest ISIT records before an EICR: the report has to say whether each item's checks are up to date.
The regulations require a qualified person: someone competent to do the inspection, the checks and any remedial work. They do not name a scheme or qualification.

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