HOW TO HIRE · ELECTRICAL

How to hire a PAT tester in the UK
The checks, the questions and the paperwork.

No register applies to PAT testing, and the law does not require annual tests. What landlords and businesses need, what to ask, and what records to keep.

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THE 60-SECOND VERSION

Hiring a PAT tester in five steps

  1. Know why you need itA Scottish let, a furnished rental, an office or a community hall: the reason sets how often.
  2. List the appliancesRoughly how many items, and which are moved or used heavily.
  3. Ask about competenceThe right test kit and someone who understands the results.
  4. Agree the price per itemMinimum charge, per-item price and what a failed plug or fuse costs.
  5. Keep the recordsA list of items, results and dates; HSE says labels are optional but useful.

BEFORE YOU BOOK

Check before you book

No register applies

Portable appliance testing has no licensing body or register of its own anywhere in the UK. HSE says the person needs to be competent: the right equipment, the ability to use it and the ability to understand the results.

Ask what test equipment the tester uses and how they record results. hse.gov.uk →

What the law requires

HSE says the Electricity at Work Regulations 1989 require equipment that could cause injury to be maintained in a safe condition, but do not say what must be done or how often, and do not make annual testing a legal requirement. Frequency depends on the equipment and where it is used.

Ask the tester to suggest intervals for each type of item, not a blanket year. hse.gov.uk →

Scottish landlords

Landlords in Scotland must make sure appliances they supply, such as cookers and kettles, are safe and regularly inspected, and have the wiring checked by a registered electrician no less often than every 5 years, as part of the repairing standard.

For a Scottish let, book the PAT testing alongside the five-yearly electrical inspection. mygov.scot →

Insurance and trader status

Expect public liability cover for the PAT testing, and ask for the insurer's name and the limit. Because you are buying from a trader, the Consumer Rights Act 2015 applies to the PAT testing; agreed in your home or at a distance, it usually carries a 14-day cancellation right under the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013, although work you asked to begin early is paid for and made-to-measure goods are excluded (regulation 28).

Ask for the insurance certificate before the PAT testing is booked, and look for the trader and ID-checked badges on the Locufy profile.

VAT

HMRC puts portable appliance testing at the standard rate of 20%; once a trader's taxable turnover passes £90,000 it must register, charge the 20% and list it apart from the price of the work.

Ask for the VAT number, and look for VAT as its own line on the per-item testing price. gov.uk →

“What does the PAT testing include?”

A good answer: A visual inspection of every item — HSE says most faults are found that way — and a test of those that need it.

“How often should my items be tested?”

A good answer: Intervals based on the type of equipment and how it is used, not a yearly default for everything.

“How is the PAT testing priced?”

A good answer: A minimum charge and a price per item, with travel stated.

“What happens to an item that fails?”

A good answer: It is labelled or taken out of use, with a cheap fix — a plug or fuse — offered at a stated price.

“What records will I get?”

A good answer: A list of each item, its result and date; labels if you want them.

“Do new appliances need testing?”

A good answer: HSE says new equipment should be supplied safe and needs only a visual check.

Getting the quote right

  • Minimum charge and price per item
  • Travel or call-out stated
  • Price for replacing plugs, fuses or leads
  • Format of the records — paper or digital
  • Who actually attends — the tester who visits, employed or subcontracted — and the business's VAT number, with VAT at 20% shown as its own line

Walk away if

  • Says annual PAT testing is a legal requirement for every item
  • Tests without inspecting plugs and cables first
  • No records left behind
  • Charges for testing brand-new equipment in full
  • Labels items 'pass' without listing them
LOW
£50
TYPICAL
£90
HIGH
£150

What a PAT tester costs: £50–£150 per visit

PAT testing is priced per visit, usually a minimum charge plus a price per item; repairs to plugs and fuses are extra. PAT Testing price guide →

Guide prices compiled by the Locufy team from published Irish and UK provider price lists and 2026/27 cost guides. Updated 2026.

KNOW WHAT TO LOOK FOR? NOW FIND ONE

PAT testers near you, with the badges that matter shown

ID checked, trader status and one score from every review — on the card, before you message anyone. Nearest first. No account needed to look.

Or post the job free and let them come to you.

  1. List the itemsThe tester records every appliance to be checked.
  2. Visual inspectionPlugs, cables and cases checked for damage, wrong fuses and wear.
  3. TestItems that need it are tested for earth continuity, insulation and polarity.
  4. Label and fixItems labelled if you want; failed plugs or fuses replaced with your agreement.
  5. ReportA list of every item with its result and the suggested retest date.

PAT
Portable appliance testing: inspecting and testing plug-in equipment.
Class I / Class II
Appliances that rely on an earth, and double-insulated ones that do not.
Visual inspection
Checking plugs, cables and cases by eye, which finds most faults.
Earth continuity test
Checks the earth connection on a Class I appliance.
Insulation resistance
Checks that the appliance's insulation is sound.
Retest interval
How long until the item should be checked again.

AFTER

When the job is done

Keep the recordsThe list of items, results and dates; HSE says records and labels are not legally required but show that a maintenance scheme exists.
Remove failed itemsAnything that failed stays out of use until it is repaired or replaced.
Diary the next roundAt the intervals the tester suggested for each kind of item.
Leave the reviewOnly booked jobs can be reviewed on Locufy, so yours carries weight; if the PAT testing falls short, use the make-it-right step first and the provider is asked to fix it before the review is published.

STEP 1Start with the tester, in writingSend the tester a short, dated account of the problem with the PAT testing and the fix you want. Section 49 of the Consumer Rights Act 2015 implies reasonable care and skill into the contract, and section 54 gives you repeat performance or a price reduction when it is missing.
STEP 2Use Locufy's make-it-right stepRate the PAT testing under four stars and you are asked whether to send it to the provider first; we follow it through. Then the review goes up.
STEP 3Unsafe equipment or a landlord's dutyUnsafe equipment at work falls under the Electricity at Work Regulations 1989, which HSE oversees. A Scottish tenant whose landlord will not inspect supplied appliances can use the repairing standard. For a trading dispute over the PAT testing, Trading Standards is reached through the Citizens Advice consumer helpline on 0808 223 1133 in England and Wales, Advice Direct Scotland on 0808 800 9060, or Consumerline on 0300 123 6262 in Northern Ireland.
STEP 4Money still in disputeIf the PAT testing is still not settled, you can claim without a solicitor: the small claims track takes claims up to £10,000 in England and Wales, simple procedure up to £5,000 in Scotland, and the small claims court up to £5,000 in Northern Ireland.

Hiring a PAT tester: questions people ask

Not as such. HSE says the law requires equipment to be maintained safely but does not make testing, or annual testing, a legal requirement. Scottish landlords must have appliances they supply regularly inspected.

No register applies. HSE says the person needs to be competent, with the right equipment and the knowledge to understand the results.

£50–£150 a visit, typically around £90. Most testers charge a minimum plus a price per item. How the figure is built up is in the PAT Testing price guide; search by postcode above to see what PAT testers near you quote.

It depends on the equipment and where it is used; a power tool on a building site far more often than a lamp in a hotel room, in HSE's example.

HSE says neither is legally required, but both help show your maintenance scheme exists.

HSE says new equipment should be supplied safe and needs only a visual check.

MORE GUIDES

More hiring guides in electrical

How to hire: Electrical Safety Inspection (EICR)How to hire: ElectricianHow to hire: Smoke & Heat Alarm InstallationHow to hire: Carbon Monoxide AlarmHow to hire: Electrical Fault FindingHow to hire: Socket & Switch InstallationHow to hire: Extra SocketsHow to hire: Emergency ElectricianAll 701 hiring guides →

PAT testers near you

PAT testers in LondonPAT testers in ManchesterPAT testers in BirminghamPAT testers in GlasgowPAT testers in BelfastAll pat testers on Locufy →

Sources — checked October 2026

  1. HSE — portable appliance testing: answers to popular questions
  2. mygov.scot — repairs and maintenance as a private landlord
  3. Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020
  4. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 49 — reasonable care and skill
  5. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 54 — what you can ask for when a service falls short
  6. Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013, regulation 30 — the 14-day cancellation period
  7. Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013, regulation 28 — contracts the cancellation right does not cover
  8. Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013, regulation 36 — services started within the cancellation period
  9. Civil Procedure Rules Part 26 — the small claims track limit (England and Wales)
  10. Scottish Courts and Tribunals — making a claim under simple procedure
  11. nidirect — the small claims process (Northern Ireland)
  12. VAT rates — VAT rates for goods and services: standard rate 20% on most goods and services
  13. GOV.UK — Register for VAT: when to register