Should I insist on an electrical certificate?

[ToastyCrumpet]

I’m nearing exchange on a house about 35 years old and asked for an electrical certificate but the sellers have refused. Would you insist?

Nope. 35 year old electrics will probably have some issues. Just factor that in to your purchase.

Too late to renegotiate the price, unf.

How’s it too late if not yet exchanged?

I don’t want to delay moving unless it’s for something substantial.

Is this your first purchase by any chance?

35 year old houses are likely to have 35 year old electrics. Some will have been rewired but I'd not walk away if it hadn't.

Just my experience though from buying and selling a few houses.

Kerberos is right.

Have you had the survey done? If the electrics haven't been replaced in 30 years then you possibly will need it rewiring

Have had a building survey done but not electrical survey. No it’s not my first purchase but the last was a new conversion.

Did the building surveyor mention anything about the wiring or the consumer unit?
Ours looked in the cupboard and then warned us a full rewire could be needed which was over 3k when accounting for the plastering and we then had to replace the kitchen as it wasn't fit to refit it after we stripped it out. The cost added up quite quickly

I will check the survey and if it doesn’t say anything will call him on Monday.

No I wouldn't insist, I would assume electrics may need attention at some point but if you love the house it's not a big factor at all.

It’s about £3K for rewiring.

If you’re worried just get your own done, then if it reveals any major issues you could negotiate some money off possibly.

I don't understand why you think it is too late to negotiate. It won't cause much delay, maybe a day or two at most. The solicitors don't stop working while the seller considers the new offer. It would be less of a delay than insisting on a certificate. I'd ask your surveyor about the consumer unit and if the seller mentioned any updates they had done. Then knock off the 3k from your offer. They can refuse of course and then you can decide if you want to stick with your original offer.

The delay would be in getting electrician in.

To put it bluntly the electrics in the house will more than likely be 35 years old if the seller doesn't have a certificate. Rules, regulations and best practice will have changed over the past 35 years and to get up to current standards the house will need re-wiring. It is most likely that the the electrics in your new house will work perfectly well. If you want up to date electrics then factor in the re-wire cost.
I currently have an illegal oven in my kitchen as the standards have changed in the last couple of years however it works perfectly and is safe.

Every house would need to be rewired every times the regs changed if all the eelctrics had to be up to date. Thank goodness that isn't the case.

The seller is under no obligation to provide a certificate for the electrics. If they are working okay for the current occupants, why would they suddenly become faulty when you move in? Yes, they are probably the same age as the house, but that doesn't make them dangerous. I would think your biggest problem will be a lack of plug sockets round the house.
I blame the rental market for this expectation of certificates for everything under the sun.

In my case it’s nothing to do with the rental market. I was asked to provide a certificate when I sold my last home and did. I therefore expected the people I’m buying from to provide one and they’ve refused.

@ToastyCrumpet

I’m nearing exchange on a house about 35 years old and asked for an electrical certificate but the sellers have refused. Would you insist?

I think if this was a deal breaker, it should have been dealt with much sooner.

You can’t force them to provide an electrical certificate.

So, you have 3 choices

Walk away
Buy anyway
Ask if they’d be prepared to allow you to pay for one and it be acquired before exchange.

Personally, if you were my buyer and only just making a noise about this. I wouldn’t be too impressed (but then, I’ve always sold chain free so wasn’t prepared to put up with last minute pissing about)

Houses front suddenly need rewiring because they were built late 80s or early 90s! Ask for a periodical inspection to be completed by all means but modern pvc insulation and latter derivatives installed well age quite well usually. Check if you have RCCDs and MCBs or rewireable fuses, the latter should be removed from a general safety perspective but they are not "dangerous" in themselves.

I wouldn't expect a 1980s house to have a valid electrical certificate. You were presumably aware of the age when you put in an offer.
If I didn't already have one relating to recent building work, I wouldn't provide one if asked either.

If you want a house to be like a brand new house, buy a brand new house. It's completely unrealistic to expect people to rewire their relatively new house when they put it in the market.

A certificate would not be worth the paper it is written on.

An indemnity would insure you against someone else getting hurt by faulty electrics. A certificate will say it is unsafe because of various changes to the regulations since it was built or since the electrics were re done.

I had to get a certificate when selling for some work that was done around the time the regulations were changed. I got a certificate for the whole house.

This doesn't meet regs, that doesn't meet regs - etc etc. The work done 12 years ago met all but the most recent regs. The rest, done in 2000 did not meet the 2007 regs or the more recent ones.

1980s houses are due a rewire, it won't meet current regs and no cert will make any difference

If the buyer wanted the electrics checked , then I would have no problem letting him get them checked, buyers have to get their own surveys done so it's up to them to get any other checks they want done.