The instigators of Part P of the Building Regulations want the UK to be a safer place regarding domestic electrical installations for our clients and homeowners. This is very laudable, but the road to hell is paved with good intentions, and clearly this is another such road.

The hell it leads to is that of a badly formed law that does not recognise custom and practice in the UK and therefore will create unnecessary cost. With the current endemic shortage of skilled workers in the electrical sector, this is the road to hell.

I have been in the business for 35 years – for 25 of these as an NICEIC approved contractor. Last year I resigned from the NICEIC due to ill health and I am now semi-retired. I do not carry out sufficient installations of any size to warrant my continued membership costs.

It now seems that unless I register for Part P I shall be forced out of business and into early retirement by the new rules. What a waste of experience and talent in an industry that cries out for technicians and qualified personnel.

Source

Electrical and Mechanical Contractor

Postscript

Alan Crisp, Alan Crisp Electrical Contractors, Dartford, Kent