We at PAT testing Northwest offer portable appliance testing across Lytham St Annes and surrounding areas.

We are here to help you with any query’s or questions you may have.

The testing of the electrical appliances in your work place is essential for yourself, your clients and your employees. Generally insurance companies request a PAT test be carried out.

PAT Testing will also comply with your companies obligations under the Health & Safety at Work Regulations and the Electricity at Work Regulations.

• The Health & Safety Executive states that 25% of all re-portable electrical accidents involve portable appliances.
• Current legislation demands that employers ensure portable appliances are safe.
• Comply with the Electricity At Work Regulations.
• Prevent risk of fire and injury due to faulty electrical equipment.
• Insurance companies cannot dispute claims of damage through fire because of insufficient electrical maintenance.
• Comply with ISO 9000 Quality Assurance Health and Safety requirements.

Although there is currently no strict legal requirement for PAT testing.

The Government however has put regulations into place that require the maintenance and safety of electrical appliances, subsequently the most effective way to ensure that these regulations are met is through PAT testing.

The UK Health and Safety Executive along with insurance companies will expect you to perform PAT testing to ensure that you are compliant with certain regulations including:

• Health and Safety at Work Act of 1974
• The Electricity at Work Regulations of 1989
• The Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations of 1998
• The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations of 1999

Not complying with the above mentioned regulations can result in fines up to £5,000 and/or six months imprisonment. Fines have been seen to go as high as £20,000 and offences heard in the Crown Court have carried sentences of more than 2 years imprisonment in additional to unlimited financial penalties. So even though PAT testing itself is not legally required, it simply helps you to protect yourself by ensuring that you are complying with these regulations.

Claims that PAT testing is required by law and that the client is breaking the law by not having it done are simply not true. The law does require however that employers, including self-employed, ensure that all electrical equipment that they provide in their business is safe and properly maintained. This means that PAT testing is a critical part of your company’s health and safety and should be considered part of a solution to your safety concerns.

PAT testing provides the most effective way to identify defects that can come with use. Faults in electrical equipment pose a potential hazard, particularly if they are not repaired readily. Even though PAT testing itself is not required by law, the consequences of electrical faults should be considered carefully.

Any appliance that uses a flexible cable or plug and socket qualifies as a portable appliance. In other words, if you have an appliance that has a plug that is intended to be connected to a wall socket or generator, it qualifies as needing to be PAT tested.

PAT Testing Procedure

1) Client Liaison :

When quoting for PAT testing various factors need to be taken into consideration:

• Your location
• The category of your site (e.g. construction, school, office, factory, etc.)
• The number of appliances to test
• How many engineers are needed to carry out the work
• Whether time consuming site inductions are required
• Various other factors

To put the cost of PAT testing into perspective, please view the following scenario:

• Your work place has 20 items (1 hours work for a single engineer)
• Travel 45 minutes each way (1 hour, 30 minutes)
• 30 minute induction
• Certificate and paperwork (30 minutes)

This would give a total of 3 hours, 30 minutes and a travel cost of £10.00 (not including PAT testing labels and other expenses).

This is all taken into account when giving calculating the PAT testing cost.