Having regularly scheduled PAT (Portable Appliance Testing) is important to maintain the safety of electrical appliances, in addition to demonstrating compliance with the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005 for insurance purposes and risk assessment documentation. While most appliances require testing once a year or every two to four years, some appliances in high risk environments (ie. construction and industrial sites) may require additional testing at shorter intervals (ie. 6 months, 9 months) depending on condition/age and frequency of use. Appliances, for the purposes of PAT testing are defined as any device which connects directly to the power socket (printers, computers, refrigerators, kettles, microwaves, laptop chargers, etc.)
Scheduled PAT Testing
Regularly scheduled PAT testing significantly reduces the potential for safety hazards, such as shocks, fires or potential injury/outages from any electrical faults, as the testing service identifies any faulty or possibly dangerous appliances. If any issues are found, dangerous appliances will be removed safely for replacement or repair, depending on the severity of the hazard. Likewise, having regularly scheduled maintenance reduces disruptions in the workplace caused by faulty appliances, which can result in downtime if not repaired or replaced.
Multi-Annual PAT Testing
Multi-Annual PAT testing can also be helpful in maintaining the health and safety of electrical appliances by having documented service intervals based on the appliance type and their environments. As previously noted above, higher risk environments, where appliances are used more frequently like construction sites and industrial spaces may require 6-12 month intervals, while office, IT and residential equipment require testing every one to four years depending on usage. Having Multi-Annual PAT testing is cost effective long-term as any possible hazards will be identified or monitored for electrical safety, in addition to providing ongoing demonstrated compliance documentation for insurance and legal purposes, and informing risk management strategies and practices in the workplace.
PAT Reports
Following PAT testing (which should always be carried out by a qualified and trained electrician or technician) reports such as EICR Reports will be provided to the client for reference and compliance documentation. Based on these reports and the environment, Multi-Annual PAT testing can be easily scheduled to meet the needs of the space and appliances, and to provide ease of mind for future testing services.
Book Your Scheduled PAT Testing Now
Being proactive about electrical safety witt scheduled PAT Testing will give you peace of mind as well as documented regulatory compliance. To learn more about our recurring PAT Testing services give us a call now on 01-9602636 or contact us online for more info.
If you found this post helpful make sure you check out our post about Electrical Building Services.
