Lowest price per item you've heard of for PAT Testing?

[Dan]

I was just reading this here:

"Over the last few years we've watched the PAT Testing Industry turn almost on its head - where companies once were charging a fortune to test your equipment, now they're charging mere pennies. If you are looking for the cheapest price for your PAT Testing, please browse around the internet - you'll find dozens of companies falling over themselves to undercut each other, and give you the lowest possible price. But please, take a moment to consider what you'll get for your 67p (or less) per item!

If you are paying 'The Lowest Price Guaranteed' per item for your PAT Testing - it is almost certain that your equipment is NOT being tested properly.

And remember, the Health and Safety at Work Act makes you, not your PAT Testing Company, responsible if you have an accident."

.. from PAT Testing | PAT Testing Price - http://www.pat-testing-expert.com/pat-testing/help.php

67p per item it mentions!!! WHaaaaaat?!?!!

So I wondered, what's the lowest price you guys have heard about?

 

[SJD]

I can find a London-based company that quote: "£0.55p Per Test For Over 5000 Appliances". However, the London congestion charge is an extra cost, if applicable.

 

[Jay Sparks]

I have heard some companies do 30p per item but I am not sure how accurate this is! But if it is, I can only imagine there is no testing going on and the tester just fills out a green sticker and pops it on.

Jay

 

[Wilko]

Surely the cost of training, equipment, annual calibration, travel, setup time, labour cost per hour must exceed these figures? Let alone for the company to make a profit? Just to pick a number, say £200 per day all up, say £25 per working hour. At 55p ea that's 45 per hour or about 80 seconds each. I don't do this work myself, but I have read the ISITEE code of practice and I couldn't do a compliant test and record activity in that time. But I am slow and methodical, and possibly thick.

 

[Taylortwocities]

I used to do PAT testing as an aside for some estate agents that i did other electrical work for. Eventually I ditched it as it was not worth while.
Usually it was just to test half a dozen items in a house or flat, in addition to the actual test I had to:
Agree a date, go to site to find tenant had forgotton
or
Go to agency to pick up keys
Drive to site
Do the test - assuming that I could even get near the appliances/try and move washing machine full of wet washing to get to the socket behind, try not to let the cat out, hope the dog isn't a killer
Drive back to agency to return keys

So, no money on those jobs.

But I am not one to complain......

 

[FatAlan]

Surely there must be a minimum charge on a job to cover costs etc and make a profit?

 

[Barry White]

We were charged 99p per item at work. Found a sticker on my laptop cable one on the charger and one on the actual laptop too. Did the same with the lcd monitor sticker on the psu and one on the monitor.
After seeing this I checked the battery drills but only found it on the charger lol.

 

[LeeH]

When I did the course as an apprentice you were suppose to treat items like that separate as they could easily get separated.

I have this beef at work with the company we use. I fought to get it done in house by the electrical dept. (Us) But we cost more due to the fact we would strip the plug and sockets down to check connections and inspect everything inch of the cord, record the serial numbers etc.

Hawksworth charge a quid or so even for a 5pin 415 extension that takes a good chunk of time to inspect and check the polarity etc.

Cost won over safety and were a multi million pound PLC with ISO this and accredited that.

 

[Dan]

That all said then, what kind of prices do you expect to get per item yourselves if you do it?

Seems it's bread and butter for some but not really clever approving something that hasn't even been checked.

I couldn't even find a pen quick enough to make a profit at 30p an item let alone do the actual work to check it. Not that I do it of course.

 

[westward10]

We have lost work to people doing it for 50 pence a shot. You haven't got to be clever to know what this will entail. Client doesn't care as tbey see it as money they haven't got down the drain with no return.

 

[Dan]

According to that site in the OP it's the client that's going to get told off if things go wrong. Do you think landlords and whatnot are always aware? or do they assume it's the tester that'll get told off?

 

[Wilko]

I think landlord / employer is responsible to take reasonable steps to ensure safety, and a PAT programme and records will assist them to demonstrate compliance. For them to get into trouble (if God forbid someone was hurt), I think CPS would have to show they knew the PAT programme was not fit for purpose.

 

[Dan]

Maybe laying it on heavy on that website then. It'd scare me into paying £5 an item for sure lol

 

[uksrevivor]

A firm i worked for has previously charged £50 for the first 60 items then 50p per item after that. I know a lot of dodgy testers are out there I was expected to do 250 tests a day minimum for one firm I lasted a day told them to poke it as there way of testing in large offices and big london hotels was as I was told, get under desk unplug 1 extension lead unplug 1 iec lead plug extension lead in and press test label said extension lead then press test again label extension lead thats still plugged in to socket do this for the amount of extension leads thats under desk no one will know, count the iec leads plug 1 in and press test keep doing this and label other leads still attached to mains. Class 2 items easy peasy dont plug anything in to tester and press test label up as many as possible and that will get your numbers up to the 250 goal then you on a bonus after that for each item.

 

[LED Lighting]

The lowest I have seen over the past few years was £0.35 per item.
It really makes me wonder how they make any money on these.
just on basic maths to make £20 per hour these boys must be "testing" 60 items per hour (thats 1 per minuet!!)

uksrevivor - you mention class 2 is easy!! I did some PAT Testing today (the correct way) and doing an IR test between LN and the metal body of a class 2 TV I had 1.4Mohms.
There was no earth connection at all, 2 core cable on a kettle lead supplying the TV. This is the only time I have ever come across this in the 6 years I have been doing PAT Testing! but is shows the risks when "sticker boys" just stick a sticker on a class 2 item that looks ok!

 

[westward10]

So you had 1.4 Meg ohm, did you fail it or take it out of service. Sometimes removing any aerial/service connections can clear IR issues. Bit confused over the kettle lead, kettle leads are normally different to IEC connectors, a kettle lead or hot connector as they can be known as will fit an IEC connectors but an IEC connector should not fit a kettle as the kettle connection has a key way. If it had an IEC connection the TV may well be class I.

 

[Andy78]

My mate lost a pat test job last year. The factory that needed the work doing took on a company that were charging about a third less than my mate per item. They were a bit shocked when their extras bill came to several hundreds for a few handfuls of fuses and plug tops. My mate would have included that in his price per item. That's how they make money.

 

[westward10]

We do this but the client is always made aware of the situation, they have the option of not allowing repairs and receive a failure cert instead, mind you I will just undertake minor repairs foc.

 

[Andy78]

We do this but the client is always made aware of the situation, they have the option of not allowing repairs and receive a failure cert instead, mind you I will just undertake minor repairs foc.

In this case the customer knew nothing until the bill hit their desk. "We do all the repairs while we're testing" was quoted but no mention of extra cost was made. The customer assumed in with the price.

 

[westward10]

In this case the customer knew nothing until the bill hit their desk. "We do all the repairs while we're testing" was quoted but no mention of extra cost was made. The customer assumed in with the price.

This is obviously a selling ploy and may be misleading unless it was in their Terms and Conditions.