Originally Posted by
GCE
Hi
A COC covers the Electrical Installation as Defined in the OHSA , Electrical Installation Regulations of 2009 ( EIR)
The definition of Electrical installation is from Point of Control to Point of consumption and excludes any machinery from the supplier
Point of control and point of supply is clearly defined and if you could not isolate the supply to work on the connection box then it is not Point of Control . If you could isolate it then it could change .
The COC would only cover point of control onwards , It however does not relieve the owner from being responsible for the supply cable
The user is responsible for - extract from EIR " shall be responsible for the safety of the conductors on his or her premises connecting the electrical installation to the point of supply in the case where the point of supply is not the point of control" I would say from this statement that you would be responsible for the cable itself within the premises - Whether it is our responsibility to make the actual connection compliant I would debate especially since I cannot isolate the point - Maybe what should happen is that council get notify in writing that there is a problem with there connection and they sort it out.
I have a feeling council are using that particular statement to push the blame onto you but looking at the definitions it is still not part of the COC
Extracts from EIR pasted below
Responsibility for electrical installations
2. (1) Subject to subregulation (3), the user or lessor of an electrical installation, as the case may be, shall be responsible for the safety, safe use and maintenance of the electrical installation he or she uses or leases.
(2) The user or lessor of an electrical installation, as the case may be, shall be responsible for the safety of the conductors on his or her premises connecting the electrical installation to the point of supply in the case where the point of supply is not the point of control.
Certificate of compliance
7. (1) Subject to the provisions of subregulation (3), every user or lessor of an electrical installation, as the case may be, shall have a valid certificate of compliance for that installation in the form of Annexure 1, which shall be accompanied by a test report in the format approved by the chief inspector, in respect of every such electrical installation.
(2)
Subject to the provisions of subregulation (3), every user or lessor of an electrical installation, as the case may be, shall on request produce the certificate of compliance for that electrical installation to an inspector, a supplier or, subject to regulation 4(1), an approved inspection authority for electrical installations.
Issuing of certificate of compliance
9. (1) No person other than a registered person may issue a certificate of compliance.
(2) A registered person may issue a certificate of compliance accompanied by the required test report only after having satisfied himself or herself by means of an inspection and test that
(a)
a new electrical installation complies with the provisions of regulation 5(1) and was carried out under his or her general control; or
(b)
an electrical installation which existed prior to the publication of the current edition of the health and safety standard incorporated into these Regulations in terms of regulation 5(1), complies with the general safety principles of such standard; or
(c)
an electrical installation referred to in paragraph (b), to which extensions or alterations have been effected, that
(i) the existing part of the electrical installation complies with the general safety principles of such standard and is reasonably safe, and
(ii) the extensions or alterations effected comply with the provisions of regulation 5(1) and were carried out under his or her general control.
"point of supply" means the point at which electricity is supplied to any premises by a supplier;
"point of control" means the point at which an electrical installation on or in any premises can be switched off by a user or lessor from the electricity supplied from the point of supply, or the point at which a particular part of an electrical installation on or in any premises can be switched off where different users occupy different portions of such premises;
"electrical installation" means any machinery, in or on any premises, used for the transmission of electricity from a point of control to a point of consumption anywhere on the premises, including any article forming part of such an electrical installation irrespective of whether or not it is part of the electrical circuit, but excluding
(a)
any machinery of the supplier related to the supply of electricity on the premises;
(b)
any machinery which transmits electrical energy in communication, control circuits, television or radio circuits;
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