What the Electrical Inspection Checklist Builder does
This builds an electrical inspection checklist for a board, a panel or an installation: visual items and test items kept apart, an acceptance criterion written next to every line, columns for the measured result and any observation, a findings summary and a printable schedule with a sign-off.
It is a working checklist, not a certificate. Acceptance criteria come from the design and the standard that applies where the installation is - this page records what you enter and classifies it; it does not decide what is acceptable, and it does not make anyone competent to issue a condition report.
Choose IEC or NEC as the basis and the page shows which body the criteria should come from, along with the same plain statement every electrical tool here carries: the results are indicative and must be verified by a qualified engineer. Everything runs in your browser.
How to use it
- Name the installation, its location, a reference and who is inspecting, so the sheet can be filed.
- Pick the standards basis - IEC/BS 7671 style or NEC style - and the observation scheme. Use the BS 7671 codes only where that standard applies; C1, C2, C3 and FI mean nothing anywhere else.
- Enter one item per line: description, whether it is visual or a test, the acceptance criterion, the unit, the measured result, the code and any observation.
- Write the acceptance criterion for every test item. A recorded value with no limit next to it cannot be judged, now or in two years.
- Leave the result and code blank for anything not carried out. It is then counted as not recorded rather than as a pass, and it appears in its own list on the printed sheet.
Reading the results
Danger-level findings - C1 and C2 on the BS 7671 scheme, FAIL on the generic one - are listed first and drive the overall verdict. Anything at that level needs action before the installation is relied on.
Advisory findings are recorded improvements, not faults. They belong on the sheet because the next inspection will want to know whether they were ever addressed.
Items with no result are the ones that cause arguments later. Recording a limitation and why - concealed, energised, no access - is the honest alternative to a blank box that reads as a pass.
A verdict of no observations means every result met the criterion you wrote on this sheet. It says nothing about items that were not on the sheet in the first place, which is why the scope of an inspection is as important as its results.
Worked example: a periodic check on a lighting distribution board
Ten items: four visual, six test. The visual items cover the enclosure, blanks in unused ways, circuit labelling and whether the protective devices match the schedule. The test items cover continuity, insulation resistance, loop impedance, RCD operating time, polarity and main bonding.
Way 12 has no blank fitted, so a live part is accessible behind the escutcheon. That is recorded as a failure with the observation written out, and it is the finding that drives the verdict.
The insulation resistance on way 4 measures 0.3 Mohm against an acceptance criterion of at least 1.0 Mohm. Recorded as a failure, with the observation that the circuit was locked off - a result of 0.3 Mohm is not a paperwork problem.
The earth fault loop impedance on the same way is 0.92 ohm against a criterion of no more than 1.44 ohm: a pass, and the criterion is written next to it so the margin is visible.
The RCD test was not carried out, so its result and code are left blank. It appears in the not-carried-out list rather than being counted among the passes. The main bonding was concealed behind trunking and is recorded as a limitation with the reason.
The sheet therefore reports two findings, one limitation and one item not carried out, across ten items - and it says plainly that it is not a condition report.
Visual inspection and testing are different activities
Most of what makes an installation safe is found by looking: missing blanks, damaged enclosures, wrong device ratings, unlabelled circuits, bonding that was never connected. None of it produces a number, and none of it is found by a test instrument.
Testing answers a narrower question, and only about the circuits that were tested. A board can pass every electrical test on the schedule and still be dangerous because a cover is missing. That is why the two are kept as separate sections here rather than mixed into one list - and why the visual section normally comes first.
Codes only mean something inside their standard
C1, C2, C3 and FI are the observation codes used on a BS 7671 electrical installation condition report in the UK: danger present, potentially dangerous, improvement recommended, further investigation required. They carry specific consequences within that framework and are issued by a competent person on a prescribed form.
Outside that framework they mean nothing, which is why this page offers a plain pass/fail/observation scheme as the default. A checklist using generic codes is honest about being a working document; one borrowing C1 and C2 without the standard behind it is pretending to be something it is not.
Limitations: what the result does not prove
- This is a working checklist produced from what you typed. It is not an electrical installation condition report, a test certificate, or evidence of compliance with any standard.
- It does not know the acceptance criteria. Maximum loop impedance, minimum insulation resistance and RCD disconnection times depend on the protective device, the earthing arrangement and the standard in force where the installation is - all of which come from the design and the applicable regulations.
- Inspection and testing of electrical installations must be carried out by a competent person with the appropriate instruments, and much of it on a dead installation. Nothing here changes that.
- A clean sheet only covers the items on the sheet. The scope of an inspection, and any limitations agreed before it started, matter as much as the results.
Privacy: where your data goes
Everything you paste, type or drop is processed in this browser tab. It is not uploaded, logged, stored or sent to analytics. Session recording and tag-manager scripts are switched off on this page.
Standards and sources
- IEC 60300-3-11 - Dependability: reliability centred maintenance - checked 19 Sep 2026
- IEC 60364-6 - Low-voltage electrical installations: verification
- NFPA 70B - Standard for Electrical Equipment Maintenance
Frequently asked questions
What goes on an electrical inspection checklist?
Visual items and test items, each with an acceptance criterion, a place for the measured result, a classification code and an observation. Plus the installation reference, who inspected it, when, and the standard the criteria came from. The criterion next to each test is the part that makes the sheet useful later.
What do C1, C2, C3 and FI mean?
They are the observation codes on a BS 7671 electrical installation condition report: C1 danger present and immediate action required; C2 potentially dangerous, urgent remedial action; C3 improvement recommended; FI further investigation required without delay. They only apply where BS 7671 does, and only a competent person can issue such a report.
What is the difference between inspection and testing?
Inspection is looking: enclosures, blanks, labelling, device ratings, bonding, signs of damage or overheating. Testing is measuring: continuity, insulation resistance, loop impedance, RCD operation, polarity. Both are needed, and most defects are found by the first.
How do I record something I could not check?
As a limitation, with the reason - concealed behind trunking, could not be isolated, no access to the plant room. That is the honest alternative to a blank box, and it lets the next inspection pick it up. This page counts anything with no result as not carried out rather than as a pass.
Can I use this instead of an EICR?
No. An electrical installation condition report has a prescribed form, prescribed content, a defined scope with agreed limitations, and a signature from a competent person. This is a working checklist for your own records; if a report is required, the report is what must be issued.
Should I use the IEC or the NEC setting?
Whichever standard the installation was built to and is maintained under. The setting does not change any calculation on this page - it records which body the acceptance criteria should come from, so the sheet says on its face which rules were being applied.
How often should an installation be inspected?
That depends on the installation, its environment and the regulations where it is. Periodic intervals are set by the applicable standard and by a risk assessment - a construction site, a swimming pool and an office are not on the same cycle. Take the interval from your regulations, not from a web page.
Is the data I enter stored anywhere?
No. Everything is processed in your browser, and the copy, CSV and JSON exports are produced locally. Nothing is uploaded, and nothing is kept once the tab is closed.
Last reviewed by the A2Z.Tools team against the sources listed above.
