Questions and Answers

What is "portable appliance testing" ?
The testing required by law of all portable electrical appliances for their operational safety and the safety of operatives. It is often referred to as PAT testing

What is a"portable appliance" ?
Usually any piece of electrical equipment, whether it can be moved or not, which has a lead with a plug and needs to be plugged into a socket connected to the mains electricity supply.

Who needs PAT testing ?
Any commercial business, from the self-employed to large companies, needs to have all portable electrical equipment tested. The nature of the business is not relevant to the need for testing but it may have a bearing on the frequency of testing.

Must we have testing done ?
Yes any commercial business has a legal responsibility under regulation 4 (2) of the Electricity at Work Regulations '89 to have this safety testing carried out.

What does the regulation say ?
"As may be necessary to prevent danger, all systems shall be maintained so as to prevent, so far as is practicable, such danger."
Regulation 3 of the Electricity at Work Regulations states,
"It shall be the duty of every employer and self employed person to comply with the provisions of these regulations".

Any other regulations ?
In the Health & Safety At Work Regulations, all employers have a legal duty to: "provide safe plant and equipment", and: "every employer must ensure that equipment is maintained in an efficient state, in efficient working order and in good repair." There are others in the act which cover the safety of plant and equipment and the safety of operators.

Does it affect our insurance cover ?
It may well do. You should check with your insurance company to be certain.
Generally insurance companies assume that when giving insurance cover to a business, the owners of that business are complying with ALL regulations necessary. An insurance company may reduce, delay, or even refuse to pay on any claim for damage, if an appliance that has not been tested has caused the damage.

Is it expensive ?
No. Compared to the cost of a fire, or possible claim for an accident, it is cheap.

How often should we have appliances tested ?
No periods of time have been laid down in the regulations, much depends on the type of equipment, where and how it is used, the environment in which it is kept, it's age etc. Recommendations suggest appliances should be tested every twelve months, or every two, three, or four years depending on the appliance. In arduous or demanding circumstances it may be necessary to test much more frequently.

These recommendations should be the basis for discussion between the testing company and your maintenance / health & safety manager.

What should we do now ?
All businesses need to take precautions to be sure that all the electrical appliances within their control are safe and do not create a hazard when in use. Routine testing and inspection of portable electrical equipment is normally part of any strategy for ensuring that work equipment is maintained in a safe condition.

What's include in our tests

1.) The test (obviously) using the latest computerised equipment..
2.) Free change of "wrong size" fuses in 13A-plug top.
3.) Free re-make of wrongly connected plug top.
4.) Free re-test on any equipment repaired by us.
5.) Pass label attached to equipment
6.) Unique appliance identification
7.) A full print out of all test information (Not just a PASS or FAIL) if required
8.) A pass certificate for each appliance
9.) If the appliance fails the test then a fail label is attached to equipment.

For further information, or to discuss your specific requirements, including details of costs, please don't hesitate to contact us.