What Affects the Cost of an Electrician, and How to Keep It Down

Most domestic electricians charge by the hour, by the job, or a mix: a fixed price for a well-defined task such as fitting a new light, and hourly rates where the work is hard to predict, such as tracing a fault. On TEKTO CNCT each electrician sets their own hourly rate, and you see it, with the CNCT Service Fee, before you confirm.

The work you can see is often the quick part. The time goes on:

• Finding the fault. An intermittent trip can take longer to trace than to fix.
• Access: lifting floorboards, getting into a loft or chasing cable into a wall.
• The age of the wiring. Older installations can need more work to connect to safely.
• Testing and certification after the work, which is part of the job, not an extra.
• Making good: filling and tidying the holes the work needed.

In England, Part P of the Building Regulations covers electrical work in homes. Some work is notifiable, which means building control must be told. That includes adding a new circuit, replacing a consumer unit, and most work in a bathroom near the bath or shower.

An electrician registered with a competent person scheme, such as NICEIC or NAPIT, can self-certify notifiable work. You should receive an Electrical Installation Certificate or a Minor Electrical Installation Works Certificate for the job, and for notifiable work a Building Regulations compliance certificate. Keep them: a buyer's solicitor will ask for them when you sell.

Parts are the other half of the bill. On TEKTO CNCT parts are charged at cost, with nothing added, and the electrician shows you what is needed and its price in the app before buying it. Nothing is added to the booking until you approve it.

• Describe the problem precisely and send photos: which circuit trips, and when.
• Group small jobs into one visit rather than booking each on its own.
• Clear access to the consumer unit, the loft hatch and the work area before they arrive.
• Ask for like-for-like fittings where you can; unusual ones take longer to source.
• If you let property, book the Electrical Installation Condition Report and any fixes together.

Landlords in England must have the electrics in a rented home inspected and tested at least every five years, and give tenants a copy of the report. Booking the inspection and any remedial work as one job saves a second visit.