How often does PAT testing need to be done?

Work out the next dates

Pick the equipment and where it is used, and enter the date of the last visual inspection or test. The dates are HSE’s suggested starting points, not legal deadlines. Nothing leaves your browser. The same tool is on its own page as the PAT due date checker.

HSE’s suggested initial intervals

Table 1 of HSE’s HSG107, Maintaining portable electrical equipment. HSE calls these “suggested starting intervals when implementing a maintenance plan” and says they “are not legal requirements” (paragraphs 56 and 57). Where a range is shown, the shorter interval is for more demanding conditions of use and the longer one for less demanding conditions.

• Cables, leads and plugs connected to Class II equipment should be maintained as part of that equipment. Cables leads and plugs not dedicated to an item of equipment should be maintained as individual items as appropriate.
• Over time, when you look at the results of user checks, formal visual inspections and portable appliance tests you will notice trends. These may tell you that you need to look at or test electrical equipment more or less often, depending on the number of problems being found.
• If electrical equipment is grouped together for testing at the same time, you should use the shortest testing interval in the group rather than the longest. Alternatively, it may be appropriate to group your electrical equipment by testing interval.
• Source: HSE, HSG107 (third edition, 2013), Table 1 and its notes; ranges written with “to” in place of a dash. HSE’s leaflet INDG236 gives the same figures for low-risk environments.

HSG107 notes that the IET’s Code of Practice for In-service Inspection and Testing of Electrical Equipment has a similar table, presented differently and in some places in more detail, and that the two are considered consistent. The Code is copyright, so its figures are not reproduced here.

User checks, visual inspections and tests

• User checks. HSE encourages people to look at the equipment and its cable before use: damage to the lead or plug, taped joints, coloured wires showing where the cable enters the plug, damage to the casing, burn marks or staining, and signs it has been used somewhere wet or dusty.
• Formal visual inspection. A more systematic check by someone who knows what to look for, which can include taking the plug cover off to check the fuse, the wiring and the cord grip. HSE says these inspections “can reveal most potentially dangerous faults” (HSG107, paragraph 40), and its PAT FAQ says most electrical safety defects can be found by visual examination.
• Combined inspection and test. Some faults, such as a broken earth wire inside a flexible cable or deteriorating insulation, can only be found by testing (paragraph 47). HSE recommends a test for earthed (Class I) equipment to make sure the earth connection is sound. Double-insulated (Class II) equipment, marked with a square inside a square, does not need one, but still gets user checks and visual inspections. If you cannot see the symbol, HSE says to assume Class I.

When to check outside the interval

HSG107 (paragraph 47) says a combined inspection and test is likely to be justified whenever there is reason to suppose the equipment may be defective and this cannot be confirmed by looking at it, after any repair, modification or similar work, and at periods appropriate to the equipment, how often and how it is used, and the environment. Faulty equipment should be taken out of use until it is repaired by a competent person.

Adjusting the interval over time

The table is a starting point. HSE expects the dutyholder to review it: after the first few inspections, a low failure rate suggests the interval can be increased and a high failure rate that it should be shortened (HSG107, paragraph 60). Equipment provided for public use, where you do not control how it is used, may need formal visual inspections much more often (paragraph 58). When HSE reviewed five years of annual test results for its own offices, it decided further tests were not needed in the foreseeable future, or at all for some types of equipment, and kept user checks and visual inspections.

Records and labels

HSE says there is no legal requirement to label equipment or keep records of inspections and tests, but both are useful for managing the work and showing a scheme exists. If you do label, HSG107 (paragraph 54) says the label should not show a next test date, because the dutyholder, not the tester, decides when the next test is due. Our post on PAT labels that stay current explains why that matters in practice.

How Hovermarks handles this

In Hovermarks each appliance is an asset on the schedule you set from your risk assessment, so the interval is yours and the app reminds you before it is due. Small QR plug labels and cable flags open the appliance’s live record instead of printing a next-due date, and results can come from a PAT session on a phone or from a PAT tester’s CSV export. Details are on the PAT testing solution page.

Frequently asked questions

Does PAT testing need to be done every year?

No. HSE says the Electricity at Work Regulations 1989 do not make it a legal requirement to test all portable electrical appliances every year (HSG107, paragraph 18). They require equipment that could cause danger to be maintained so as to prevent it, and leave the method and frequency to a risk assessment. Annual testing is a choice some organisations make, not a legal rule.

Is PAT testing a legal requirement?

Not for employers in Great Britain. HSE's answer to "Is PAT compulsory?" is: "No. The law simply requires an employer to ensure that their electrical equipment is maintained in order to prevent danger. It does not say how this should be done or how often." Some landlords are different: Scotland's private landlords and England's social landlords have specific rules, covered on the landlords page.

How often should PAT testing be done in an office?

HSE's suggested starting points for an office are: desktop computers, photocopiers and other IT that is rarely moved, a formal visual inspection every 2 to 4 years and no test if double insulated, otherwise up to 5 years; earthed (Class I) items such as kettles, a visual inspection every 6 months to 1 year and a combined inspection and test every 1 to 2 years. In HSE's case study of a high street travel agent, the manager decided the computers, printers and fax needed only a visual inspection every 5 years.

Does new equipment need PAT testing?

HSE says new equipment should be supplied in a safe condition and not require a formal portable appliance inspection or test, but a simple visual check is recommended to verify the item is not damaged.

Does a PAT certificate expire?

No law requires a PAT certificate for workplace equipment. HSE says there is no legal requirement to keep records of inspection or testing, or to label equipment, although both are useful. The next check is due when your risk assessment says, not on a date printed by the tester: HSE says the person doing the test should not decide when the next one is due, and a label, if used, should not show a next test date (HSG107, paragraph 54).

Do fridges, ovens and laptops need PAT testing?

It depends on how they are built and used, not on what they are. HSE lists fridges, microwaves, washing machines and electric cookers as movable equipment. Earthed (Class I) items get a combined inspection and test in HSE's table; double-insulated (Class II) items get user checks and visual inspections only. Large items wired into the supply that are not designed to be moved count as part of the fixed installation. HSE leaves battery-operated equipment itself out, so for a laptop the item to look after is its mains charger, which HSE counts as battery-charging equipment.

Related: who can do PAT testing, PAT testing for landlords, PAT due date checker, PAT labels that stay current, compliance glossary.