How much does it cost to rewire a house?
The cost of an electrician to rewire your house depends on its size, where you live and the complexity of the rewire including the price of the materials. Equipping yourself with some knowledge of rewiring your house and the time it takes will help you get an honest quote from a qualified electrician.
The cost to rewire your home can range from £2000 to £9000 with a small flat being the cheapest and a large property the most expensive. You may also require extra sockets, dimmer switches, downlights and external lighting or power which will make it more expensive.
Cost to rewire a small flat is around £2000
To rewire a small flat will take approximately 4 days with the biggest expense being labour. The average day rate in the UK is approximately £240 and, depending on the team, there could be one or two people working on the job at any time. The materials should cost no more than £400 but this depends a lot on the quality and fittings. Plastering and carpet fitting skills are also part of the job and you need to discuss with the electrician if you need to hire those skills. Depending on the work required you might have to redecorate some rooms after the electrician has finished. Also they will need to test the system and provide you with an electrical installation certificate to present to any future buyers. All of these additional things can push the cost higher.
Cost to rewire a 3 bedroom house is around £5000
To rewire a 3 bedroom house will take around 7 days and the materials alone will cost upwards of £1000 to accommodate the extra sockets, switches and light fittings in the extra rooms. If the rewire is because of a major renovation to the house the renovated or extended rooms may require additional power points.
If the property is older than 30 year and has not been previously rewired you will need a new consumer unit and if it needs to be moved for any reason you will need a utility company visit booked in, which is charged. If you want an EV charging point in your garage or driveway or a garden RCD safety socket added this is a good time to get it done but will be charged.
If you want to change the charging point layout of a room, add shaving points in your bathroom or fit CCTV, now is the time to consult with your electrician who will be able to add them to your quote for a better price than doing it separately.
Major alterations to the electrical network in your home will probably mean you will need to fix the walls and floors so plasterers, flooring specialists and painters and decorators may be required depending on the specification you require. Consult with your electrician.
Tip: You can live in your home while the job is taking place but you will have to survive without power while the electricians are working around you and it can get quite messy. If the property is vacant the electrician might give you a better deal, so it is good to discuss before the job. If you do vacate you will have to budget in additional accommodation for the duration.
Why do I need to rewire my house?
If you live in an old house (over 30 years old) and the fusebox, sockets, switches and wiring looks dated you may need to rewire your home to meet the modern demands of electrical appliances and to avoid creating a fire hazard. Signs of poor or degraded wiring, flickering lights and getting slight electric shocks from plug sockets are a sign that the electrical wiring in your home needs upgrading.
Landlords are legally obliged to have an Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR) every 5 years before they can rent to tenants. Homeowners are recommended to have their home inspected every 10 years but it is not a requirement by law. If you are a homeowner and you want to sell you property vendors may ask for an EICR throught their solicitors so it is worth having one for you home. If this report flags faulty or unsafe wiring you will have to rewire that circuit or even the entire property.
If you are planning major alterations to your property, including extensions, garage conversions and loft conversion all new wiring will have to comply with IET wiring regulation (BS 7671). You might need to upgrade your existing wiring to cope with the additional loads including replacing the RCD consumer unit. In this case your electrician should give you an Electrical Installation Certificate EIC which which will cover the circuits that have been replaced.
How much does an Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR) cost?
An Electrical Installation Condition Report is important to landlords renting to tenants and homeowners looking to sell their home. The report summarises the condition of the electrical wiring in a property and whether or not it is in good condition. The cost of an EICR depends on where you live and the size of the property. For one bedroom flat it can cost from £100 including VAT up to £300 or more for very large properties. Some electricians offer a cheaper service and this depends on the location, electricians in and around London tend to be more expensive.
What does rewiring a house involve?
When an electrician starts working on your home they will split the work into two stages or fixes, the first and second fix. The first fix includes removing the old cable and adding new circuits and back boxes through the walls and under the floorboards and through the attic. For this, access will be needed, so carpets will be lifted, some walls will be cut out and access to the attic will be required. This can end up being a messy business and the electrician will probably advise you to find alternative accommodation for a few days.
You need to have an idea of what additional electrical features you want at this point. Adding additional sockets and changing the wiring plan to make it suitable for modern consumers is going to make your house more attractive to a buyer. After the first fix, the walls, ceiling and flooring will be made good so that the system can be connected.
1st Fix - Strip out the old wiring and replace new circuits and back boxes. This will include circuits for internal and external lighting, central heating controls, smoke detectors, television aerials, data, telephone points, intercom etc.
2nd Fix - Fitting electric sockets and switch plates (including dimmers), light fittings, fitting and connecting the consumer unit, connecting the boiler, wiring electric fans, cooker and electric showers.
The new wiring will need to be tested and the electrician will then give you an Electrical Installation Certificate EIC to say if the wiring is completely new, an addition to already existing wiring or an alteration.
Other wiring jobs to consider
While you're having your house rewired, you might want to consider whether other wiring, such as home network wiring (or Cat6 cabling) and media wiring might be useful to you. While it will take longer, it will probably be less disruptive to you overall to do it all in one go.
Home network cabling
Home network cabling is when you have cabling installed to improve the reliability of your internet connection. Wireless networks often struggle to cover a whole house, even in small houses, so installing Cat6 cabling (a type of Ethernet cable) will allow you to have a stable connection wherever you are in your home.
Running Ethernet cables through your home costs an average of £150-£200, but it will depend on the size of your property, the length of cabling required and whether you need any housing to hide cables. It will also depend on how many data points you want installed for your home network – generally a single data point costs £100 and a double data point £140.
Media wiring
Media walls are a growing trend in the UK, where homeowners create an entertainment wall that usually features a TV, multiple speakers, lighting and sometimes a fireplace. Having all of this equipment in one place could cause an unsightly mess with cables and extension leads all over the place, so you could pay to have media wiring installed.
If you’re looking for an entire media wall, including all audio/visual equipment, this will set you back an average of £2,800. However, it depends on whether you want a fireplace installed and how complex the installation will be. If you want a false wall for your TV and fireplace, the average cost is £60 per square metre, which includes the plasterboard, plastering, skirting and electrics.
While the initial cost is high, your home will look stylish and neat and tidy thanks to all the wiring being hidden away behind the stud wall. It could even add value to your home since it will look impressive to prospective buyers.
How do I find an electrician to rewire my home?
If you want a qualified electrician to send you a quote to rewire your home, post a job on HaMuch and find out who is available in your area and what their hourly and daily rates are. We recommend you get 3 quotes to compare so you get a better understanding of how much you are going to need to budget for.