Electrical Certificate of Compliance: who is responsible? The Seller of this property provided a CoC prior to transfer. I was surprised that it cost only R500 and the property was 100% compliant. I had just sold my house in Jhb and it cost me R17,200 to fix a few minor problems so the CoC could be issued. After I moved in here, I found numerous minor problems and then a few dangerous connections.

I appointed an electrical company to do a CoC on my new property even though the CoC was issued in Aug 2014 and is valid for 2 years. I am 63. I have changed 3 light bulbs and replaced a few 2 prong plugs on appliances with 3 prong plugs. I have made no electrical changes. The electrician is here now and he will provide a report of the problems. There are many more that I suspected. He seems to think that I will need to sue the Seller. I can't afford legal action against the seller. I am also not able to sell this property as I can't afford the cost of fixing the problems to get a "real" CoC. My guess: it will cost R50-R70K. I'll have the quote within a few days.

Questions for the experts and I pray that someone can assist:
I purchased a property with a CoC issued with an ECA number.
Why have a CoC if the buyer is not protected? Is there legislation to protect the buyer without the buyer incurring huge legal and/or repair expenses? The electrician may lose his license but who is liable for the cost of fixing the problems?

I strongly recommend that all buyers pay an independent electrical company to provide the CoC. Remember it is very much cheaper for the seller to bribe an electrician than it is to get a legitimate CoC.