Electrics and gas
A small distribution board is on the wall beside a shower tray. What electrical test and what zoning comment are both outside a visual home survey?
Both an electrical test and a zoning comment under the wiring rules are outside this visual home survey. A small distribution board on the wall beside a shower tray is something the surveyor can see and record as a position. The inspection did not test the board, the circuits or any protective device. It also did not apply bathroom zoning as an electrical inspector would. The note is where the board sits. It is not an electrical certificate.
Last reviewed 24 October 2026. Written for buyers in England and Wales unless this answer says otherwise. No named surveyor has signed this page. It is general guidance, not a report on your house, and not legal advice.
What is the fuller explanation?
Position matters because a shower throws water, and electrical equipment beside it is judged against zoning rules that an electrician applies with the rules in front of them. A home survey does not make that judgement, and it does not measure the installation. Writing the board is beside the tray is the whole of the observation. Turning that sentence into a zone classification, or into a pass, would invent a test that did not happen.
Ask an electrician to inspect the board and to say, in an electrical report, what the position means. Keep that separate from the home survey. Tell the solicitor there is an untested board beside a shower tray, not a completed electrical inspection. Do not cover the board, move it, or use the shower as a way of checking it. The survey has not tested anything there.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- Did you only record the board beside the shower tray?
- Was any electrical test of that board outside this visit?
- Did you leave zoning to an electrician rather than decide it?
What are the typical next steps?
- Treat the note as the board's position, not as a test.
- Ask an electrician to inspect the board and comment on zoning.
- Do not read the home survey as an electrical certificate.
Costs vary with the building and with who you instruct. Where this page does not cite a published figure, ask the surveyor, a relevant specialist, or your solicitor for a written quote. Do not treat a forum average as the price.
Also asked about this
If the board has a modern lid, is the position acceptable?
No. A modern lid describes the enclosure. It does not test the circuits and it does not apply zoning rules. The survey has not done either of those things. The finding remains a board beside a shower tray, seen and not electrically inspected.
Does a dry tray on the day clear the board?
No. A dry tray shows that water was not lying there during the visit. It does not test the board, and it does not decide whether the position meets the wiring rules. Zoning was outside this visual survey. Dryness is not an electrical result.