CURRENT LEGAL REQUIREMENTS
ELECTRICAL SAFETY REGULATIONS – NON DOMESTIC BUILDINGS

Electricity at Work Regulations 1989

The purpose of the Regulations, which came into force on 1st April 1990, is to require precautions to be taken against the risk of death
or personal injury from electricity in work activities. The Regulations are made under the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974,
which imposes duties on employers, the self-employed and employees (all referred to as ‘dutyholders’) in respect of systems, electrical
equipment and conductors and work activities on or near electrical equipment.

Portable Appliance Testing (PAT)

The Electricity at Work Regulations 1989 require that any electrical equipment that has the potential to cause injury is maintained
in a safe condition.

The frequency of inspection and testing depends upon the type of equipment and the environment it is used in. For example, a power
tool used on a construction site should be examined more frequently than a lamp in a hotel bedroom

The person doing testing work needs to competent to do it. In many low-risk environments, a sensible (competent) member of staff
can undertake visual inspections if they have enough knowledge and training. However, when undertaking combined inspection and
testing, a greater level of knowledge and experience is needed, and the person will need:

• The right equipment to do the tests
• The ability to use this test equipment properly
• The ability to properly understand the test results

The Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015 (CDM 2015)

The Construction (Design and Management) Regulations (CDM) are the primary regulations for managing the health, safety and
welfare of all construction projects in Great Britain. CDM 2007 has been replaced, and CDM 2015 came into force on 6 April 2015.

The Client is now responsible for making the arrangements by which the project will be managed and ensuring that those
arrangements are maintained and reviewed throughout the life of the project. Under CDM 2007, the Client only had to take
reasonable steps to ensure that the arrangements made were suitable and subsequently maintained and reviewed.

The Client is also responsible for taking ‘reasonable steps’ to ensure:

• Both the Principal Designer and Principal Contractor comply with their duties
• Pre-construction information is provided ‘as soon as is practicable’ to every Contractor and Designer appointed
  or considered for appointment
• The construction phase plan and health and safety file are produced
• The health and safety file is handed over to any new owner of the structure