No law in Great Britain requires portable appliance testing by name, and no law sets an interval for it. What the Electricity at Work Regulations 1989 require is that electrical systems are maintained, so far as is reasonably practicable, so as to prevent danger. Testing is one way of meeting that duty and evidencing it. HSE says in as many words that annual testing of everything in a low-risk workplace is a myth.
What PAT testing law actually says
Regulation 4(2) of the Electricity at Work Regulations 1989 requires that, as may be necessary to prevent danger, all systems shall be maintained so as to prevent danger, so far as is reasonably practicable. That is the whole of the duty. It does not name portable appliance testing, does not set frequencies, and leaves the method to the duty-holder to justify.
Why the myth is so persistent
Because a testing industry grew up around a real duty and simplified it into a product with an annual cycle. HSE published guidance specifically to counter it, saying it is a myth that all portable appliances in a low-risk environment such as an office need a test every year, and that the law does not state what needs to be done or how often.
Who asks for it in practice: PAT testing insurance and other conditions
Insurers, landlords of commercial premises, principal contractors running site inductions, event venues, licensing authorities and clients writing procurement conditions. None of them is applying a statutory requirement; they are managing their own risk. That is a real commercial requirement even though it is not a legal one, and it is usually what the search is actually about.
PAT test landlord duties in rented homes
A residential landlord must ensure electrical appliances supplied with the let are safe. Testing is the normal way of showing it, and many letting agents require it, but the statutory five-yearly inspection in England applies to the fixed installation rather than to appliances. The two duties are often bought together and are not the same duty.
Meeting PAT testing requirements: what a defensible position looks like
A written assessment of the equipment and the environment, a maintenance regime that follows from it, records of what was inspected and when, and user checks between formal inspections. That is what an inspector or an insurer will actually ask to see, and it is a stronger answer than a stack of annual certificates nobody thought about.
Is a PAT test a legal requirement for landlords?
Not as a named test, and the answer is the same shape as it is for a workplace. In England a landlord of a private rented home must have the fixed installation inspected and tested at least every five years under the 2020 electrical safety standards regulations, and must keep the appliances they supply in a safe condition, which is a duty to maintain rather than an instruction to test annually. Scotland goes further and its statutory guidance asks for a portable appliance check on landlord supplied appliances at each tenancy change or at the five yearly inspection. So a register of what was supplied, looked at and found safe is the evidence worth holding, in both cases, whether or not anybody calls it a PAT test.
Other questions people ask
Is PAT testing a legal requirement in the UK?
No. The law requires electrical equipment to be maintained so as to prevent danger. PAT testing is one common way of doing and evidencing that, not a legal requirement in itself.
Is annual PAT testing required by law?
No. HSE says explicitly that annual testing of everything in a low-risk environment is a myth and that the law does not state what needs to be done or how often.
Do landlords have to have appliances PAT tested?
Landlords must ensure appliances they supply are safe. Testing is the usual evidence for that, but no statute sets a PAT interval for a rented home.
Why does my insurer ask for PAT certificates then?
Because it is their contractual condition, not a statutory one. It is still binding on you, and it is worth asking what evidence they will actually accept.
What do PAT testing certificates actually prove?
That the items listed were inspected and tested on that date and passed. They prove nothing about the items nobody put on the list, which is why an asset register that matches the building matters more than the certificate itself.
Is landlord PAT testing a legal requirement?
Not as a named duty in England. What the law requires is that electrical equipment provided is safe, and inspection and testing is the usual way of showing it, which is why letting agents and insurers ask for records even though no statute names the test.