Does Your House Need Rewiring? The Signs to Look For

Warning signs your house needs rewiring

Checkatrade’s rewiring advice gives these warning signs that a house may need rewiring. Any one of them is a reason to have a registered electrician check the wiring.

Warning sign	What it points to	What to do
Flickering or dimming lights	Wiring that may be outdated or unsafe	Have the wiring inspected
Circuit breakers that trip often	An overloaded circuit, a faulty appliance, or damaged or ageing wiring	Call an electrician if it keeps tripping
Discoloured or damaged sockets and switches	Heat damage or arcing	Call an electrician
A burning smell near a socket	Something overheating	Turn off the power and call an electrician immediately
Electric shocks from switches or appliances	A fault in the switch, the appliance or the wiring	Call an electrician
Worn, frayed or visibly damaged cables, especially old rubber-sheathed wiring	Wiring that may need replacing	Call an electrician

A breaker that keeps tripping is not always a wiring fault, since an overloaded circuit can trip it and a faulty appliance is the most common reason an RCD trips.

A burning smell, sparks or buzzing

A burning smell near a socket means turning off the power and calling an electrician immediately. Sparks and buzzing are reasons to call an electrician too.

How often a house should be rewired

Electricians work to a rule of thumb of a rewire every 25 to 30 years, so the age of your wiring is the first thing to pin down.

Checkatrade’s advice on RCD tripping says to call an electrician when the consumer unit or the wiring is over 25 years old, or when bathroom or kitchen circuits have no RCD protection. It also names ageing wiring in homes built before the 1970s and never rewired as a cause of tripping.

Checking the wiring with an EICR

Checkatrade’s rewiring advice says the most reliable way to assess the wiring in a house is an Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR), carried out by a qualified electrician.

Checkatrade’s electrical safety check guide says only landlords are legally required to have an EICR, and recommends one for homeowners every 5 to 10 years, or sooner if problems arise. Checkatrade’s rewiring cost guide gives a homeowner’s interval as every 10 years. Any of the warning signs above is a reason not to wait for either.

Of the Nottingham electricians compared for rewires and EICRs, Central Electrical Contractors on Carlton Road carries out EICRs, Legacy Electrical in Beechdale gives free rewire quotes for older homes and Hucknall Electrical takes on full or partial rewiring.

What the codes on an EICR mean

Each observation in the report carries a code, and an EICR is satisfactory only if it has no C1 or C2 codes.

Code	What it means
C1	Dangerous, and needs immediate action
C2	Potentially dangerous, and needs urgent remedial work
C3	Improvement recommended, but not unsafe
FI	Further investigation required

If the report comes back with C1 or C2 codes, ask the electrician whether putting them right means repairs, a partial rewire or a full rewire.

Getting an EICR before you buy an older home

When you are buying an older property, Checkatrade’s rewiring advice is to ask for an EICR before exchanging contracts. Outdated or unsafe wiring can affect your eligibility for insurance, and it may put off buyers when you come to sell.

What an EICR and a rewire cost

Checkatrade’s electrical safety check prices, last updated in September 2024, put an EICR at £100 to £250, and £200 on average, excluding VAT. The price of a full rewire rises with the size of the home, and Checkatrade’s rewiring cost figures put a 1-bed flat at £3,900, a 3-bed house at £6,225 and a 5-bed house at £10,000 on average, excluding VAT.

If your home is over 30 years old and has never been rewired, Checkatrade’s rewiring cost guide says to factor a rewire into your renovation plans, since combining the projects is often more cost-effective.