Emergency Electrician Call-Out Charges Explained

There is no standard call-out fee

Electricians set their own charges. An evening visit to make one circuit safe is not the same job as tracing a fault and replacing a length of cable. A single figure would mislead you, so this page does not publish one. This site does not quote the work and does not add a call-out fee of its own.

What the price usually reflects

• Whether the visit is inside normal hours or treated as an emergency.
• Travel.
• The time spent testing, which can be the larger part of a small repair.
• Parts, and a return visit if a part is not on the van.
• Whether the fee is for attendance only, or is deducted if you accept a repair.

Questions worth asking

Ask what happens if you decline the repair after the fault has been found. Ask whether making safe is included. Ask for the further work, if there is any, to be described before you approve it. You can limit the first visit to making the installation safe and take another quote for the rest.

When not to shop around

Call 999 if there is fire, smoke or an injury. That is the emergency service, not an electrician. If an RCD will not stay on and there is a smell of burning, leave the device off and treat the visit as urgent. The NHS page on calling 999 explains the life-threatening cases that belong there. HSE's electricity guidance is the backdrop for treating electrical work as something that can kill if it is improvised.

Send the details through the emergency electrician page. Say what tripped, whether it stays off, and whether anyone can smell burning. The firms that reply set the charge.