Electrical work
Toolbox talks for electricians
Shaun Holmes
I have watched people treat a circuit as dead because the light in the room is off. HSE says you cannot see, hear or smell electricity, and that refurbishment is where electricians and other trades get killed when a circuit was assumed to be dead.
These are the talks I would read before a first fix or a rewire, and the HSE pages behind them. Chasing masonry is the silica talk. Drilling a building from before 2000 is the asbestos talk. The pages stay open to read. The pack asks for an email the first time.
This talk supplements the site's own risk assessment and method. It does not replace them, and it is not a substitute for competent health and safety advice.
Talks for this trade
About 5 minutes
Electrical safety
Isolation, 110 volt tools, and overhead lines. Do not start because the light is off.
Read the talk
About 5 minutes
Asbestos awareness
Drilling and chasing in a building built or refurbished before 2000. Stop if you are not sure.
Read the talk
About 5 minutes
Silica dust
Chasing and drilling masonry creates respirable crystalline silica. Water or H or M class extraction comes first.
Read the talk
About 5 minutes
Working at height
Containment, loft hatches, and cable runs above a stair. Do the work from the ground where you can.
Read the talk
About 5 minutes
Ladders and stepladders
A ladder outside can also reach an overhead line. HSE's ladder page includes that rule.
Read the talk
About 5 minutes
Lone working
One person in a house, and a check-in nobody has agreed before they are left there.
Read the talk
About 5 minutes
Manual handling
Drums of cable, boards and consumer units. There is no single legal weight limit to hide behind.
Read the talk
Tools for your trade
- What day rate should I charge?
A day rate from the take-home you want, the days you cannot invoice, and the share you set aside for tax.
- Mileage allowance calculator
The HMRC flat mileage rate for a car, van or motorcycle, with the 10,000-mile split.
- VAT threshold checker
A rolling 12-month turnover set against the £90,000 VAT registration line.
HSE pages for this trade
These are the HSE pages I used. None of them are affiliate links.
Electrical systems in buildings (opens in a new tab)
HSE says about three workers a year are electrocuted during refurbishment. Assume a circuit is live until a competent person has isolated it and proved it.
Overhead power lines (opens in a new tab)
A ladder, a scaffold tube or a MEWP can reach a line. Flashover can kill without a touch. Do not trust gloves or boots.
Asbestos (opens in a new tab)
Buildings from before 2000 can still hide it. Ask for the register or the survey before you open the fabric.
Construction dust (opens in a new tab)
Chasing concrete and brick is a lung disease risk, not only a mess to sweep up.
Working at height (opens in a new tab)
Avoid the climb first. A ladder is for low risk and short duration, not the automatic answer.
Lone working (opens in a new tab)
Someone working alone still needs a way for you to know they are all right.
A blank register, with nothing else on the page, is the toolbox talk sign-off sheet. The full library is on the toolbox talks page, and a year of topics is in the 52-week planner.
Electricians toolbox talk pack
The talks on this page, each with its own sign-off sheet, on one page you can print. The talks stay here to read. Opening the pack asks for an email the first time.
Get a ready-to-read toolbox talk every week
I've spent over 20 years in UK construction. Every issue of my free weekly email includes a toolbox talk you can read out on Monday morning, plus plain-English tips for the van and the office.
Free tools for a day rate, a tax estimate, a CIS deduction, and materials are on the tools page.