Frequently asked questions

Yes. Brightwell Electrical is an NICEIC Approved Contractor and NAPIT registered, with engineers qualified to 18th Edition (BS 7671) and City & Guilds 2391 Inspection & Testing. We are Part P registered and can self-certify and notify Building Control. We are also OZEV-approved for EV installations and fully insured with £5m public liability cover.

Yes — quotes and surveys are free and no-obligation. For larger jobs such as rewires we visit, assess the work and give you a fixed price in writing so there are no surprises.

We cover Romford and the whole London Borough of Havering — including Harold Hill, Hornchurch, Upminster, Collier Row, Gidea Park and Rainham — plus surrounding parts of Essex. If you’re just outside, give us a call and we’ll let you know.

All of our workmanship is covered by a 12-month guarantee, and notifiable work is registered so you receive the appropriate certification. As an NICEIC contractor our work is also covered by the NICEIC Platinum Promise.

An EICR for a typical 1–2 bedroom flat starts from £120. Larger homes are priced on the number of circuits — a 3-bed house is usually £150–£220. We give you a fixed price up front, and any remedial work is quoted separately with no obligation.

Private landlords in England must have a satisfactory EICR for each tenancy, renewed at least every five years. For owner-occupied homes we recommend an EICR every ten years, or before buying or selling a property.

An “unsatisfactory” result means one or more C1 (danger present) or C2 (potentially dangerous) issues were found. We explain exactly what needs doing, quote the remedial work transparently, and once it’s complete we re-test and issue a satisfactory report and certificate.

You may need a rewire if your home still has old rubber, lead or fabric-insulated cabling, a fuse box with rewireable fuses, frequent tripping, scorched or warm sockets, or no earthing to certain circuits. Most installations last 25–30 years. The surest way to know is an EICR — we’ll tell you honestly whether a full rewire, a partial rewire or simply some remedial work is needed.

A typical 3-bedroom house takes around 5–8 working days depending on access and finishes. Partial rewires are usually 1–3 days. We give you a clear schedule before we start and keep disruption to a minimum.

In most cases, yes. We work room by room, isolate only the circuits we’re working on and restore power each evening wherever possible. We protect floors and furniture and clean up daily so the home stays liveable.

The OZEV EV chargepoint grant is available to people who own a flat or live in rented accommodation (and to landlords for their properties), worth up to £350 off the cost of a home charger. As an OZEV-approved installer we confirm your eligibility and handle the claim for you. Homeowners in single-occupancy houses are not covered by the current grant, but we’ll always advise you on what applies.

A standard home charger install takes around 3–4 hours — typically half a day. After a quick remote survey of your fuse board and parking we give you a fixed price and a date, and notify your network operator and Building Control once it’s done.

For most homes a 7kW smart charger is ideal — it fully charges overnight and lets you schedule cheap off-peak energy. We fit all the leading brands in tethered (attached cable) or untethered (socket) form, and can recommend the best option for your car, parking and budget.

Older boards with rewireable fuses or a single RCD offer limited protection. A modern metal-clad consumer unit with individual RCBOs isolates faults instantly, protects against electric shock and fire, and means a single fault won’t cut power to the whole house. It’s often the single biggest safety improvement you can make.

Most consumer unit replacements are completed in a single day. We test the existing circuits first, fit the new board, label everything clearly and issue your certificate before we leave.

Most faults are located within the first hour using proper diagnostic testing. Intermittent faults can take longer, but we always explain what we’ve found and quote any repair before carrying it out.

Repeated RCD tripping usually points to a faulty appliance, moisture in a circuit, a damaged cable or an overloaded board. We isolate circuits methodically to find the exact cause rather than guessing, then put it right and prove the circuit is safe.

Yes — LED downlights and fittings use up to 85% less energy than halogen and last far longer, so they typically pay for themselves within a couple of years and reduce your bills from day one. We can plan a scheme and fit it cleanly throughout your home.

Our emergency call-out starts from £120, which includes attendance and the first 30 minutes on site. We always explain the rates clearly before any work begins — there are no hidden charges, even at nights and weekends.

A total loss of power, a burning or fishy smell from sockets or the fuse board, sparking, exposed or damaged live wires, or water near electrics all count as emergencies. Make the area safe, keep away from any exposed wiring, and call us straight away — we’re available 24/7.

Yes. We provide planned maintenance, fixed-wire (EICR) inspections, emergency lighting testing and PAT testing on flexible contracts tailored to your premises, with priority response and a single point of contact. Get in touch for a bespoke quote.