How to Price PAT Testing: Per-Item Rates, Annual Contracts and Landlord Compliance Margins

Quick Answer: Portable Appliance Testing prices £1.20–£2.50 per item for medium-volume contracts, with minimum call-out fees of £55–£95 and per-item rates rising to £4–£8 for very small jobs. A typical small office of 60 items prices £85–£180; a 1-bed furnished rental prices £55–£120; a 200-item factory prices £280–£480. The frequency is risk-based under the IET Code of Practice for In-service Inspection and Testing of Electrical Equipment (5th edition) — there is no statutory annual requirement. Pricing on the basis of "annual PAT" without explaining the risk-based frequency model is mis-selling.

Summary

PAT testing is one of the most misunderstood compliance jobs in the trade. Customers ask for "annual PAT testing" because that's what the previous landlord/employer/agent told them they need. The IET Code of Practice (5th edition, 2020) is explicit that there is no statutory annual frequency for PAT testing. The Electricity at Work Regulations 1989 require equipment to be maintained in a safe condition; how you achieve that is risk-based. For an office computer used by one person daily, the recommended interval is 4 years between tests with annual user checks. For a hire-shop power tool used by different operators every day, the interval is 1–3 months.

Pricing structure for PAT is two-stage: a minimum call-out fee that covers travel, setup and reporting, plus a per-item rate that scales with volume. For high-volume contracts (1,000+ items, schools, hospitals, multi-site retail), per-item rates can fall to £0.85–£1.40. For one-off small domestic jobs (5–15 items in a furnished rental), the call-out fee dominates and effective per-item cost can be £8–£15.

The compliance market is the volume driver. Letting agents typically require all furnished rental electrical appliances to be PAT tested every 1–2 years as part of their tenancy take-on process. Schools require annual or biennial testing of all classroom equipment. The Health and Safety Executive has confirmed (HSE INDG236) that there is no requirement for an annual sticker on every plug — but the sticker is what visiting inspectors and insurance auditors look for, so it remains the de-facto industry expectation.

Key Facts

Quick Reference Table

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Customer / scope Item count Per-item rate Total fee 2026
1-bed furnished rental 8–15 £4.00–£7.50 £55–£120
2-bed furnished rental 15–25 £3.20–£5.50 £75–£140
3-bed furnished rental / HMO 25–40 £2.50–£4.00 £95–£180
Small home office (sole trader) 6–12 £4.50–£8.00 £55–£95
Small office (1–2 staff) 25–50 £2.20–£3.50 £80–£175
Medium office (5–10 staff) 60–120 £1.50–£2.50 £150–£300
Large office (20+ staff) 200–400 £1.20–£1.90 £280–£760
School (per classroom) varies £1.20–£1.80 £80–£200/classroom
Pub / restaurant kitchen 40–80 £1.80–£3.20 £120–£280
Small workshop 30–60 £2.20–£3.50 £100–£220
Industrial unit 200–600 £1.10–£1.60 £280–£950
Construction tool hire shop 100–500 £1.30–£2.20 £200–£900
Site tool register (mixed plant) per visit per item £180–£450/visit

Detailed Guidance

Frequency — what the IET Code actually says

The IET Code of Practice for In-service Inspection and Testing of Electrical Equipment (5th edition, 2020) replaces fixed-interval testing with a risk-based approach. The risk assessment considers:

Indicative intervals from the IET Code (Table 7.1 equivalent):

Equipment Office environment School Factory / workshop Construction site
Stationary appliance Class I 24 months 12 months 6 months 3 months
Stationary appliance Class II 24 months 12 months 12 months 3 months
IT equipment Class I 24 months 12 months 12 months n/a
IT equipment Class II 24 months 12 months 24 months n/a
Movable appliance Class I 12 months 12 months 6 months 3 months
Portable Class I (hand-held) 12 months 6 months 3 months 1 month
IEC leads 24 months 12 months 12 months 3 months
Extension leads (factory/workshop) n/a n/a 6 months 1 month

In addition to formal testing, the IET Code recommends:

The competent person doing formal visual inspection doesn't need to be a qualified electrician — many businesses train an internal staff member to do quarterly visual inspections, with annual or biennial PAT by an external contractor.

Class I vs Class II — what's tested

Class I equipment relies on an earthed metal enclosure for protection. Test sequence:

  1. Visual inspection (cable, plug, accessory, earth bond visible)
  2. Earth continuity test at 200mA (≤0.1Ω + cable resistance)
  3. Insulation resistance test at 500V (≥1MΩ)
  4. Polarity check
  5. Functional check (powered on, working as expected)

Class II equipment uses double or reinforced insulation; no earth bond is present. Test sequence:

  1. Visual inspection
  2. Insulation resistance at 500V (≥2MΩ)
  3. Polarity check
  4. Functional check

Class III (extra-low voltage, e.g. 12V appliances with mains adaptor) — only the adaptor is PAT tested, not the appliance.

The visual inspection accounts for around 80% of detected faults — damaged cables, broken plug pins, exposed conductors. The instrument tests catch the remaining 20% of latent faults.

Pricing structures — call-out plus per-item

The standard pricing model is:

For a 60-item office, a typical quote is: £55 call-out + 60 items × £1.80 = £163. Working backwards, that's around 2.5 hours on site, £55–£70 of effective hourly rate. Test instrument amortisation, calibration, training, insurance and travel are absorbed in the call-out fee.

Annual contracts vs one-off testing

Many businesses prefer an annual contract — pay £X per year, all testing covered, single invoice. For pricing:

Annual contracts are the highest-value relationship in PAT testing. They generate predictable monthly revenue, cross-sell opportunities (EICR, fixed wiring inspection), and high customer retention.

What new testers get wrong

The most common pricing errors among new PAT testers:

  1. Underpricing the call-out fee — without a £55+ minimum, small jobs (<25 items) are loss-making once travel and reporting are included.
  2. Counting IEC leads as freebies — they're items, they need testing, they should be priced. A typical office has 1.5 IEC leads per IT item — that's a meaningful cost.
  3. Not pricing failed items separately — a failed item that needs a new plug or cable repair takes 5–15 minutes and consumes a £2–£5 plug. £8–£15 per repair is a fair charge.
  4. Not pricing reporting separately for high-end customers — large sites want CMMS-compatible reports, asset registers, and bar-code labelling. £80–£250 reporting fee on top of testing is normal for these customers.

Equipment investment

Three tiers of PAT tester:

Calibration is annual, £55–£140 depending on model. Calibration certificates are evidence in disputes — never test with an out-of-cal instrument.

City & Guilds 2377-22 (In-service Inspection and Testing of Electrical Equipment) is the recognised training qualification. £180–£420 for the course, 1–2 day duration. Many electricians also hold this alongside their main qualification.

Domestic landlord market

Section 21 / Section 8 reform under the Renters' Rights Bill (passing through Parliament in 2026) is increasing landlord compliance burden. Although there is no statutory PAT testing requirement for furnished rentals (England), the Furniture and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations 1988 and general duty of care under the Defective Premises Act 1972 mean that letting agents and managing agents typically include PAT testing in the standard tenancy take-on package.

For landlord work:

Scotland has a more explicit requirement — Housing (Scotland) Act 2014 requires landlords to ensure all electrical equipment supplied is "in a reasonable state of repair and proper working order". PAT testing is the standard way of evidencing this.

What a PAT report should contain

The minimum content of a compliant PAT report:

Modern PAT software (PATGuard, PrimePass, Seaward Apollo Suite) generates these as PDF reports for emailing and asset registers for download. Customers expect digital delivery — paper-only reports look amateur.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does PAT testing cost per item in 2026?

£1.20–£2.50 per item for medium-volume jobs (50–250 items), with a minimum call-out fee of £55–£95. Very small jobs (under 25 items) effectively cost £4–£8 per item once the call-out fee is spread over the items. Volume contracts (1,000+ items) drop to £0.85–£1.40 per item. The price includes earth/insulation/polarity testing, a label on each item, and a digital report.

Is PAT testing a legal requirement in the UK?

There is no UK law that requires "PAT testing" by name. The Electricity at Work Regulations 1989 require all electrical equipment that may give rise to danger to be maintained in a safe condition. PAT testing is the recognised method of demonstrating compliance. Under the IET Code of Practice (5th edition), the frequency is risk-based — there is no statutory annual requirement for offices and similar low-risk environments.

How often does PAT testing need to be done?

Risk-based under the IET Code of Practice. Indicative intervals: office IT equipment 24 months, school equipment 12 months, factory hand-held tools 3 months, construction site portable tools 1 month. The customer's risk assessment sets the actual interval — a contractor's job is to implement that schedule, not to mandate it.

Can a non-electrician do PAT testing?

Yes — the competent person performing PAT testing does not need to be a qualified electrician. The standard qualification is City & Guilds 2377-22 (In-service Inspection and Testing of Electrical Equipment), a 1–2 day course. Many businesses train an internal staff member rather than outsourcing. However, for any test that goes beyond simple Class I/II appliance testing (e.g. RCD adaptor testing, microwave leakage, three-phase appliance testing), additional training and equipment are needed.

Do landlords have to PAT test?

Not statutorily in England. But the duty of care under the Defective Premises Act 1972 and the safe-condition requirement of the Electricity at Work Regulations 1989 mean that letting agents typically demand PAT testing of all supplied electrical equipment at the start of each tenancy. Scotland has a stronger explicit requirement under the Housing (Scotland) Act 2014. For practical purposes, landlords with furnished rentals should PAT test at every change of tenancy and every 1–2 years for ongoing tenancies.

Regulations & Standards