Fixed Wire Testing Observation Codes C1 C2 C3

Code C1 observation  Danger present. Risk of injury. Immediate remedial action required.'

Observation code C1 is an immediate threat to the safety of your employees, customers or guests and should be rectified or made safe as soon as possible.

An example of a C1 defect would be accessible live conductors due to damage, poorly modified enclosures or removed maintenance panels. Incorrect polarity would also attract a code C1 as it may allow conductive parts, not normally expected to be live, to become live.

Once a C1 threat is identified, your Intersafe engineer will inform the duty holder or responsible person for the installation immediately, both verbally and in writing, of the risk of injury that exists. Access to the faulty circuit may even be blocked, or the circuit turned off until the the defect is fixed.

A Code 2 (C2) is not as severe as a C1, but is still a potentially dangerous defect. They may not pose an immediate threat but are likely to become a danger in the future. A C2 is described as 'Potentially dangerous - urgent remedial action required.'

The phrase "potentially dangerous", in the C2 code is designed to point towards a risk of injury from contact with live parts after a sequence of events. A sequence of events could mean that an individual may gain access to live parts through a day to day task that would not be expected to give access to live parts.

An observation code FI is described as ' Further investigation required without delay.' This means that your electrical testing engineer has observed something whilst carrying out the testing, for instance if the emergency lights seem very dim. This might not have been covered in the report so they have noted it separately as code FI.

Once faults have been rectified and your electrician has issued you with the relevant paperwork, Electrical Installation Certificate (EIC) or Minor Works Certificate (MW) these should be kept together with the Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR) to prove all faults have been rectified in accordance with BS7671.

If the unthinkable happens and someone receives a shock from part of your installation or if there is an electrical fire in your building, then a court, inquest or insurance company will certainly want to see this EICR Fixed Wire Testing report which makes it very important document.