UK Statutory Instrument SI 2002 United Kingdom

Electricity Safety, Quality and Continuity Regulations 2002

These Regulations replace the Electricity Supply Regulations 1988 (S.I. 1988/1057) and all subsequent amendments (S.I. 1990/390, S.I. 1992/2961, S.I. 1994/533, S.I. 1994/3021 and S.I. 1998/2971).

Read it on legislation.gov.uk (opens in a new tab)
Enforced by
HSE, Ofgem
Status
In Force
Penalty ceiling
Prosecution 4 of 28 obligations carry an unlimited fine. 24 have no criminal penalty — flagged in the list below.

Does it bind you?

Business-side roles with duties under this instrument.

Distributor21 Any Person6 Contractor1

Other Acts binding the same actors

If a role above is yours, these are the other instruments that most often bind it.

Distributor — also bound by 182 other Acts
Any Person — also bound by 2340 other Acts
Contractor — also bound by 173 other Acts

What it requires

Regulations creating concrete business duties or carrying penalties, grouped as the instrument is structured. Titles link to the source text — blue means you’re leaving for legislation.gov.uk.

Part 1

INTRODUCTORY

1 of 5 sections shown
s.003 General adequacy of electrical equipment (opens in a new tab) Prosecution
  • Ensure electrical equipment is safe and risks are managedDistributor

Unlimited fine

4 other sections in this Part — procedural and definitional
s.001 Citation, commencement and interpretation
s.002 Application of Regulations
s.004 Duty of co-operation
s.005 Inspection of networks
Part 2

PROTECTION AND EARTHING

5 of 5 sections shown
s.006 Electrical protection (opens in a new tab) Prosecution
  • Install electrical protection devices on your networkDistributor

Unlimited fine

s.007 Continuity of the supply neutral conductor and earthing connections (opens in a new tab) Regulated
  • Maintain continuity of supply neutral and remove prohibited safety devicesDistributor
s.008 General requirements for connection with earth (opens in a new tab) Regulated
  • Ensure electricity networks stay properly earthed to prevent dangerDistributor
s.009 Protective multiple earthing (opens in a new tab) Regulated
  • Ensure safe earthing and ground connections for low voltage networksDistributor
s.010 Earthing of metalwork (opens in a new tab) Regulated
  • Ensure all metalwork in your electricity network is safely earthedDistributor
Part 3

SUBSTATIONS

1 of 1 section shown
s.011 Substation safety (opens in a new tab) Regulated
  • Secure and signpost electricity substationsDistributor
Part 4

UNDERGROUND CABLES AND EQUIPMENT

4 of 4 sections shown
s.012 General restriction on the use of underground cables (opens in a new tab) Regulated
  • Do not use non-compliant underground cablesDistributor
s.013 Protective screens (opens in a new tab) Regulated
  • Protect underground cables with mechanical covers or grounded screensAny Person
s.014 Excavations and depth of underground cables (opens in a new tab) Regulated
  • Ensure underground cables are safe, protected, and markedAny Person
s.015 Maps of underground networks (opens in a new tab) Regulated
  • Maintain and provide maps of underground electricity networksDistributor
Part 5

OVERHEAD LINES

4 of 5 sections shown
s.016 General restriction on the use of overhead lines (opens in a new tab) Regulated
  • Do not use non-compliant or excessive voltage overhead linesDistributor
s.018 Position, insulation and protection of overhead lines (opens in a new tab) Prosecution
  • Ensure overhead lines are safely positioned and insulatedDistributor

Unlimited fine

s.019 Precautions against access and warnings of dangers (opens in a new tab) Regulated
  • Prevent unauthorised access and display warnings on overhead line supportsAny Person
s.020 Fitting of insulators to stay wires (opens in a new tab) Regulated
  • Fit insulators to overhead line stay wiresAny Person
1 other section in this Part — procedural and definitional
s.017 Minimum height of overhead lines, wires and cables (opens in a new tab)
Part 5

AVOIDANCE OF INTERFERENCE WITH OR INTERRUPTION OF SUPPLY CAUSED BY TREES

1 of 1 section shown
s.020 AVOIDANCE OF INTERFERENCE WITH OR INTERRUPTION OF SUPPLY CAUSED BY TREES Regulated
  • Prevent power interruptions caused by trees or vegetationDistributor
Part 6

GENERATION

1 of 2 sections shown
s.021 Switched alternative sources of energy (opens in a new tab) Regulated
  • Ensure alternative energy sources do not run in parallel with the main gridAny Person
1 other section in this Part — procedural and definitional
s.022 Parallel operation (opens in a new tab)
Part 7

SUPPLIES TO INSTALLATIONS AND TO OTHER NETWORKS

6 of 7 sections shown
s.023 Precautions against supply failure (opens in a new tab) Regulated
  • Prevent and restrict electricity supply failuresDistributor
s.024 Equipment on a consumer’s premises (opens in a new tab) Regulated
  • Maintain safe electrical equipment and earthing on customer premisesDistributor
s.025 Connections to installations or to other networks (opens in a new tab) Regulated
  • Obtain distributor consent before connecting to the electricity networkAny Person
s.026 Disconnection of supply, refusal to connect and resolution of disagreements (opens in a new tab) Regulated
  • Follow proper procedure when disconnecting or refusing to connect electricity supplyDistributor
s.027 Declaration of phases, frequency and voltage at supply terminals (opens in a new tab) Regulated
  • Declare electricity supply characteristics to consumersDistributor
s.028 Information to be provided on request (opens in a new tab) Regulated
  • Provide network technical specifications upon requestDistributor
1 other section in this Part — procedural and definitional
s.029 Discontinuation of supplies (opens in a new tab)
Part 8

MISCELLANEOUS

5 of 7 sections shown
s.030 Inspections, etc. for the Secretary of State (opens in a new tab) Regulated
  • Provide facilities and information to electricity inspectorsDistributor
s.031 Notification of specified events (opens in a new tab) Regulated
  • Notify the Secretary of State of serious electrical incidents and fatalitiesDistributor
s.032 Notification of certain interruptions of supply (opens in a new tab) Regulated
  • Notify the Secretary of State of major power supply interruptionsDistributor
s.034 Networks, equipment or installations in breach of Regulations (opens in a new tab) Regulated
  • Comply with safety notices regarding electrical equipment and installationsDistributor
s.035 Offences (opens in a new tab) Prosecution
  • Fail to comply with electricity safety regulationsContractor

Unlimited fine

2 other sections in this Part — procedural and definitional
s.033 Exemption from requirements of Regulations (opens in a new tab)
s.036 Revocation (opens in a new tab)
Schedules

Schedules

0 of 21 shown
21 other schedules
s.001 DESIGN, COLOURS AND PROPORTIONS OF THE SAFETY SIGN (opens in a new tab)
s.002 MINIMUM HEIGHT ABOVE GROUND OF OVERHEAD LINES (opens in a new tab)
s.004 NOTIFICATION OF CERTAIN INTERRUPTIONS OF SUPPLY (opens in a new tab)
s.005 REVOCATIONS (opens in a new tab)
s.sch001 A safety sign shall incorporate a design, and shall be...
s.sch001 The triangle, symbol and text shall be shown in black...
s.sch001 The symbol shall not occupy more than 50 per cent...
s.sch001 A safety sign may include additional text but any such...
s.sch001 Schedule 1 para.wrapper1n2
s.sch003 Whether there was evidence of amateur work.
s.sch004 Particulars relating to the person submitting the notification
s.sch004 Voltage of equipment involved.
s.sch004 Type of equipment involved.
s.sch004 Date on which the notification is submitted.
s.sch004 Particulars relating to the interruption of supply
s.sch004 Duration of the interruption.
s.sch004 Approximate load affected (in megawatts).
s.sch004 Number of consumers affected approximated to the nearest 100.
s.sch004 Geographical area affected.
s.sch004 Nature and cause of the interruption.
s.sch004 Nature of any deliberate damage involved.
6 other provisions
sch. 3 para. 7 sch. 3 para. 7
sch. 3 para. 9 sch. 3 para. 9
s.001 Particulars relating to the person submitting the notice (opens in a new tab)
s.002 Date on which the notice is submitted. (opens in a new tab)
s.004 Particulars relating to the event (opens in a new tab)
s.005 Date and time of event. (opens in a new tab)

Help complying

Guvnor’s practical routes through this instrument.

Start a renewable energy business

Launch a renewable energy generation business (solar, wind, hydrogen, battery storage)
1 more guide that reference this instrument
Grid Connection for Energy Projects

Duty extraction and severity labels are Guvnor’s analysis of the instrument, not the instrument itself. Always verify against the linked source text.