Tricky Issue With Certification

[rins]

Evening guys

Iam hoping someone can offer some advice on the following.

Last thursday I installed a new consumer unit at a property, we found faults on the kitchen ring and extension light circuit whilst testing old board and informed the customer we would be able to rectify the issues this coming monday. customer being extremely inpatient decided to get a cheaper electrician in on the friday to rectify the faults. Oviously with the issues that came up we were unable to complete the full tests for the cu change and customer is demanding his cert for work.he wont let us go back to test this other electricians work thus completing his cert so what would be best to do either send cert as it is and state that we were unable to test kitchen and extension, or stand my ground and say i must test his work before i can issue cert. Dont really want to issue a cert when someone else has tampered with my board. any ideas just want to get this right my 1st suggestion feels like the right option but would like your thoughts please..

 

[ProDave]

My first thought is you must have done something to fall out with this customer big time, if they got someone "cheaper" to fix the faults and won't let you back.

Presumably you did test the non faulty circuits?

Issue a certificate and state not allowed access to complete testing.

I hope you have been paid, because it sounds like your relationship with the customer has broken down.

 

[steptoe]

you do your cert for the day it was installed, and state the limitations of your testing,

did you energise defective circuits?

the date on your cert will precede his cert so you have nothing to worry about.

 

[steptoe]

sounds like you didnt do enough pre change checks ...........

 

[rins]

Hi i did all the usual checks before change and knew the wiring was abit dodgy but thought with myself and my labourer we would sort it on the monday.

This customer is a trickster its not something ive done to upset him hes just a greedy foreigner who cuts corners and to be honest i have hated working for him. cheers for the advice prodave and steptoe will issue cert for my work only this will please him NOT haha thanks chaps

 

[steptoe]

has he paid you?

 

[steptoe]

what were the faults exactly?

 

[Manator]

Would be nice to see the certificates from this "cheaper spark" sounds like a shark to me, I would not test anything that had not been completed prior, but would agree to check it over. for instance I did a favour for a friend today who had a CU change, and since then he has had a problem with a tripping RCD, I checked everything out and found the fault to be his cooker temp switch, nothing to do with the install which I thought was carried out very well.

 

[rins]

Hes paid half and faults were no earth on extension lights which had two additional spurs off for plinths and n-e fault on kitchen sockets

 

[ProDave]

So N-E fault on kitchen sockets. Can't have been energised via an RCD. So did you leave it disconnected?

My guess is this "cheaper electrician" doesn't exist. He's either not going to bother getting the faults fixed, or he has done it himself.

In the expectation that he's going to give trouble paying, make sure you print your terms and conditions on your invoice. Mine say something along the lines of "no credit given, payment expected within 30 days. In the event of non payment I reserve the right to charge interest at 2% above the bank base rate, and will pass the unpaid debt to a debt collection agency"

The two times I have had late payers, a reminder invoice with those points highlighted got payment within a week.

I'd like to hear more about the N-E fault on the kitchen sockets and how you left them.

 

[Steve3948]

He's probably not even had the rectification work done if the truth is known.

Did you give him some form of power to the kitchen until Monday. It does not sound good and I bet he thinks your half is all your getting.

 

[Evans Electric]

Which part of the Asian sub continent is he from . ?

Fully cover your ass for the work you did , there will be no cert from "Cheaper Spark" ...get money before handing over cert and scrub his name from your list of customers.

Presume he needs cert as its a rental ???

 

[batty]

All sounds very fishy to me. Not sure what the answer is but I am sure what ever happens you are going to loose out in some way.

 

[rins]

Cheers guys just wanted to be sure before handing cert across i will state on cert unable to test these circuits i was concerned what this sparky had done to my board i am thinking hes probably put the sockets on non rcd side of cu this is why i needed clarification as to what to state on cert thanks for your advice lads i knew there was something dodgy about this guy but having family xmas etc took up the offer but this is the finish no more, initially i wasnt going to give him a cert after hearing this spark had been tampering but thought id cover my back and seek the advice. I thank you all.

 

[steptoe]

if you have connected these circuits to your board you cannot say unable to test,

did you connect these circuits?

you only have to cert what you actually connected, nothing else.

whatever you did connect must be compliant, unless you have deviations that supersede the requirements of 7671

 

[ProDave]

So did you leave the faulty kitchen sockets disconnected?

If so state that clearly on your certificate so you are covered. e.g something like MCB left to re connect kitchen circuits once existing N-E fault has been rectified.

And make sure it's dated for when YOU did the work. So any work done after that date by A.N.Other is NOT your responsibility.

 

[rins]

Sorry no the kitchen and extension were not connected as i knew theyd trip rcd

 

[ProDave]

I'll bet they ARE now connected to a non RCD protected MCB That's why they don't want you back.

But you didn't do it so just make that clear that you had provided mcb's to re connect them once the faults were fixed.

 

[NozSpark]

........and that you have been refused permission to rectify those faults

 

[Steve3948]

Out of interest what Fuseboard was it.