RAMS for Electrical Work (UK)
By the Riskora Editorial Team · Reviewed against our editorial standards · Last reviewed
Generate structured RAMS for electrical installations, EICR and fixed-wire testing, fault-finding and maintenance — built around HSG85 safe-isolation, GS38 test equipment, and BS 7671:2018+A2:2022.
UK (RAMS) example document — Two-Storey Rear Extension — 14 Birchwood Lane, Reading. Client: Mr & Mrs A. Whitfield (Private Client). Site: 14 Birchwood Lane, Reading, RG1 5JT. Scope: Construction of a two-storey rear extension (6.4m × 4.2m) to an existing semi-detached dwelling. Works comprise breaking out of existing rear elevation, trench-fill foundations to 1.0m, traditional cavity blockwork to first floor, pre-stressed concrete lintels, timber roof structure with natural slate finish, plus alterations to existing rear wall to form structural opening with rolled steel joist (RSJ 203×102 UB23). Works programmed over 9 weeks with a peak site team of 6 operatives. Hazards assessed: Manual handling — blocks, lintels, plasterboard, Working at height — independent scaffold & roof structure, Buried services strike during excavation, Collapse of excavation / trench wall, Hand-arm vibration (HAVS) — breaking out, drilling, Silica dust — cutting blocks, brick, concrete, Vehicle/pedestrian segregation — narrow domestic street.
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What should an electrical RAMS cover?
An electrical RAMS must cover safe isolation per HSG85 (lock-off, prove-dead with a known-live source, retest after work), GS38-compliant test leads and probes, the limited circumstances where live working is permitted, voltage-presence indicators, the management of disconnections in occupied premises, and the competence of the engineer (City & Guilds 2391 / 2377 / 18th Edition as relevant). It should reference BS 7671:2018+A2:2022 for the inspection methodology and the Electricity at Work Regulations 1989 for the legal duty.
Most Serious Electrical Incidents Happen to Qualified Electricians, During Testing
HSE data consistently shows that the majority of serious electrical injuries occur to qualified electricians — not labourers — and most happen during testing, fault-finding or maintenance work where the equipment was assumed to be dead. Live working, arc flash, cable strikes during excavation, inadequate isolation and disconnection of safety-critical systems (fire alarms, lifts, emergency lighting) are the recurring themes. A generic 'electrical RAMS' that doesn't pin down the safe-isolation sequence (lock-off, prove-dead with a known live source, retest) is missing the single most important control. UK law requires the documented procedure to match the actual task — installation, testing and fault-finding each have a different risk profile.
HSE's HSG85 (Electricity at Work — Safe Working Practices), GS38 (Electrical test equipment for use on low-voltage electrical systems) and BS 7671:2018+A2:2022 are the definitive UK references for electrical safe-working. The Electricity at Work Regulations 1989 require dead working as the default — live working is only permitted where it is unreasonable in all the circumstances to work dead and additional precautions are in place. Any electrical RAMS that does not reflect this is not fit for purpose.
How Riskora Helps
Riskora's electrical preset loads the HSG85 safe-isolation sequence, GS38 test-equipment requirements, the limited live-testing exceptions (insulation-resistance to earth on energised systems is not one of them), disconnection management in occupied buildings, competence recording (2391 / 2377 / 18th Edition), and the BS 7671 inspection schedule reference. The output is the document a Tier 1 contractor, NICEIC assessor or facilities client expects to see before granting access. If you're new to RAMS, our step-by-step guide to writing a RAMS explains the fundamentals before you start generating.
Who it's for
- Electrical contractors producing RAMS for commercial fit-outs and rewires
- NICEIC / NAPIT contractors carrying out periodic EICRs and fixed-wire testing
- PAT-testing contractors working in offices, schools and care homes
- Industrial electrical engineers preparing maintenance and fault-finding RAMS
- Testing and commissioning teams documenting safe systems of work
- Domestic electricians documenting rewiring and consumer-unit upgrades
Understand the Fundamentals
Before you generate your document, these guides cover the knowledge that underpins every good RAMS, risk assessment, and method statement.
What Is a RAMS Document?
Understand the two components of a RAMS and why they're required before work begins on site.
How to Write a RAMS Document
A step-by-step guide to structuring your RAMS from project details through to sign-off.
UK Legal Requirements for Risk Assessments
What the law requires under MHSWR 1999, CDM 2015 and the Electricity at Work Regulations 1989.
Who Needs a RAMS?
Find out whether your work requires a RAMS and who is responsible for producing one.
How to Write a RAMS (UK Guide)
A practical walkthrough of writing RAMS from scratch, covering structure, common mistakes, and what reviewers look for.
Construction Safety Documents Explained
An overview of the key safety documents required on UK construction sites and how they relate to each other.
Key Risks and Considerations
- •Electric shock from working on circuits assumed to be dead
- •Arc flash from inadvertent contact during fault-finding or live testing
- •Cable strikes during excavation or when chasing into walls (HSG47)
- •Tripping connected systems (lifts, fire alarms, IT) without warning
- •Loss of power to occupied premises causing secondary hazards
- •Manual handling of test equipment, cable drums and ladders for high-level distribution
- •Working at height to access ceiling-void wiring and roof-top plant
- •Burns from temporary supplies, generators and battery systems
What UK Law Actually Says
Direct quotes from the named regulations, with plain-English explanations of what each one means in practice.
Regulation 4(3), Electricity at Work Regulations 1989
“Every work activity, including operation, use and maintenance of a system and work near a system, shall be carried out in such a manner as not to give rise, so far as is reasonably practicable, to danger.”
EAW 1989 Reg 4(3) is the headline duty for any electrical RAMS. 'So far as is reasonably practicable' is the test — and the evidence of practicability is the documented method, isolation procedure, and competence record.
Read the source on legislation.gov.uk →Regulation 14, Electricity at Work Regulations 1989
“No person shall be engaged in any work activity on or so near any live conductor (other than one suitably covered with insulating material so as to prevent danger) that danger may arise unless: (a) it is unreasonable in all the circumstances for it to be dead.”
Reg 14 sets the rule: electrical work is dead by default. Live working has to be justified in writing — and that justification belongs in the RAMS. A RAMS that defaults to live working without a Reg 14 case is a regulatory red flag.
Read the source on legislation.gov.uk →The Numbers Behind the Risk
Why this matters — the most recent published figures from the Health and Safety Executive and ONS.
Approximately 30 fatal electrical incidents
Annual estimate of work-related electrical fatalities in Great Britain across all sectors — including arc-flash, electrocution, and fires of electrical origin. Most involved a failure of safe-isolation procedure.
Source: HSE — Electrical safety →1,000+ shock and burn incidents
Reportable electrical shocks and burns at work each year. The single largest cause is failure to prove dead before working, an issue squarely within the scope of an electrical RAMS.
Source: HSE — Electrical incidents at work →Worked Example: RAMS for a Distribution Board Replacement in an Occupied Office
An NICEIC-registered electrical contractor is awarded the replacement of a 200A three-phase distribution board in an occupied first-floor office. The work must be done over a weekend with the supply isolated, but the building has a server room on a UPS that must remain live throughout.
Through the structured builder, the RAMS sequences the activity in numbered steps: (1) advance permit-to-work issued by the client's facilities team, (2) dead-by-default isolation at the incoming feeder with the LOTO hardware itemised by part number, (3) proved-dead test using a GS38-compliant tester (model and calibration date noted), (4) physical removal and replacement of the DB, (5) wiring re-termination with torque values referenced to the DB manufacturer, (6) insulation resistance and continuity testing per BS 7671, (7) energisation under the documented re-livening procedure with the appointed person present.
The UPS-fed server room is segregated by an explicit boundary in the method statement — no work within 1.5m of the live UPS feed without a separate Reg 14 live-working assessment. Operatives are 18th-edition certified, the appointed person is JIB-graded Approved Electrician. Total RAMS production time: 12 minutes for a job that historically would take a senior estimator 90 minutes. Submitted Friday, work completed clean over Saturday night.
Common Mistakes (and How to Avoid Them)
1. Defaulting to 'work shall be carried out in accordance with BS 7671'
Why it fails: Quoting the standard isn't a method statement. BS 7671 covers thousands of pages of installation requirements; the RAMS must say which sections actually apply to the specific scope.
Fix: Reference the specific BS 7671 chapter (e.g. Chapter 41 for shock protection, Section 514 for identification) that governs the part of the work being done.
2. Live working without a documented Reg 14 case
Why it fails: Reg 14 requires three tests met before live working: unreasonable to be dead, reasonable to do the work live, and suitable precautions taken. Skipping this written justification is the most common HSE finding in electrical prosecutions.
Fix: Always include a Reg 14 worksheet in the RAMS for any live activity. If the boxes can't be ticked, the work is dead.
3. Missing the safe-isolation procedure with named tester
Why it fails: Failure to prove dead is the leading cause of electrical fatalities. RAMS that say 'isolate supply' without specifying the tester model, the test sequence, and the calibration date are inadequate.
Fix: Use the standard 6-step safe-isolation sequence and record the GS38 tester's serial number and last calibration in the RAMS itself.
Electrical RAMS template — what to include
An electrical RAMS template that holds up under principal-contractor or NICEIC scrutiny needs to cover the four pillars below. Anything missing one of these is the RAMS most likely to come back marked-up for revision.
- Electricity at Work Regulations 1989 — name the legal duty (Reg 4(3) for safe systems of work; Reg 14 for the live-working justification). Generic "in accordance with current legislation" wording fails this test.
- BS 7671:2018+A2:2022 (18th Edition Amendment 2) — reference the specific chapters that govern the scope: Chapter 41 (shock protection), Section 514 (identification), Part 6 (inspection & testing). Quoting the standard as a whole isn't a method.
- Safe isolation & LOTO — the full HSG85 six-step sequence: locate & identify, isolate, lock-off with personal padlock, post warning notices, prove dead with a known-live source (GS38 tester, serial number & calibration date in the RAMS), retest after work. Single-padlock LOTO with named keyholder, multi-trade hasps where required.
- Test-before-touch — every conductor treated as live until proved dead at the point of work, with the proving sequence (live → dead → re-prove on known live) and the GS38-compliant voltage indicator captured in the document. This is the single control that prevents the majority of qualified-electrician fatalities.
Riskora's electrical preset loads all four pillars into a structured RAMS in under 5 minutes — including engineer competence (2391 / 2377 / 18th Edition), disconnection management for fire alarms / lifts / IT, and the Reg 14 worksheet for any live activity. PDF download ready for sign-off.
Key Features
- Safe-isolation sequence per HSG85 (lock-off, prove-dead, retest)
- GS38 test-lead and probe requirements
- Live-testing and live-working exceptions with additional controls
- Disconnection and re-energisation management for occupied premises
- Engineer competence and qualification recording (2391 / 2377 / 18th Edition)
- BS 7671 inspection schedule reference
- Cable installation, distribution-board and temporary-supply method steps
- Download to PDF for principal contractor sign-off
Example Structure (UK Standard)
- Project Details and Scope (installation / EICR / PAT / fixed wire / fault-finding)
- Engineer Competence and Qualifications (2391 / 2377 / 18th Edition)
- Risk Assessment — Electric Shock, Arc Flash, Disconnection Impact
- Method Statement — Pre-Work Survey, Safe Isolation, Work Sequence, Re-Energisation
- Disconnection and Communication Plan (fire alarms, lifts, IT, emergency lighting)
- PPE Schedule (insulating gloves, arc-rated clothing where required)
- Test Equipment Calibration Records
- BS 7671 Inspection Schedule Reference
- Sign-Off
Common Questions Before Getting Started
Will this take long?
Under 5 minutes. Select your trade, pick hazards, download.
Is it complicated?
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Do I need experience?
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Is it free to try?
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All documents generated by Riskora should be reviewed by a competent person before use on site. Riskora provides structured templates — professional judgement is always required.
What your RAMS actually contains
Riskora builds a structured, client-facing document — not a generic AI paragraph. Every section is shaped around your job, your site and your team.
Hazards
Task-specific hazards for the job, captured row by row — not a generic list pulled from an old RAMS.
Controls
Control measures mapped to each hazard with residual risk scoring after controls are applied.
PPE
PPE requirements tied to the activity and site, ready to brief to the team.
Method steps
Step-by-step method statement structured around how the work is actually sequenced on site.
Emergency arrangements
First aid, rescue plan, emergency contacts and site-specific escalation routes.
COSHH prompts
Substance prompts when the work involves chemicals, dusts, fumes or sealants — flagged early, not missed at review.
Sign-off
Operative sign-off captured against the document — names, dates and acknowledgement of the brief.
Version history
Every change tracked so you can show what was issued, when, and which version the team signed.
Approval status
Clear approval state on every document — draft, in review, approved, issued — visible across the team.
Audit trail
Who created it, who reviewed it, who signed it. A complete trail you can hand to a principal contractor or auditor.
From copied-and-pasted to site-specific
The reason RAMS get rejected is rarely the format — it's that the document is obviously generic. Riskora rebuilds it around this job, this site and this task.
Generic template copied from an old job.
- • Hazards and controls that don't match this site or task.
- • Method steps written for a different sequence of work.
- • No emergency arrangements specific to the location.
- • Client flags it as generic and asks for a rewrite.
Site-specific document structured around this job, site and task.
- • Hazards captured from the actual scope you pasted in.
- • Method steps sequenced for how the work runs on site.
- • Emergency arrangements and rescue plan tied to the location.
- • Approved internally, briefed to the team, signed off and stored.
From job details to signed-off document
A four-step workflow used by contractors, consultants and safety teams to turn informal job details into client-ready safety paperwork.
- 1Paste job details
Drop in a client email, a WhatsApp from the site manager, a scope of works or a tender note. Anything that describes the job.
- 2Riskora structures the document
Riskora turns your brief into hazards, controls, method steps, PPE, emergency arrangements and COSHH prompts.
- 3Review, edit and download
You stay in control of every section. Tweak anything, then download a clean PDF or share a link.
- 4Brief the team and record sign-off
Brief operatives, capture their sign-off and keep a full audit trail of who signed which version.
Built by people who've written this paperwork on real sites
Riskora is built by a founder with hands-on site and document experience — designed for contractors, consultants and safety teams who need to issue, brief and prove safety paperwork without losing a day to admin.
- Built for contractors, consultants and teams
Solo trades, principal contractors and in-house safety teams all run on the same workflow. - Supports multiple countries
UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, US and Canada — wording and document types match the local standard. - Not just documents
Sign-off, approvals, version history and an audit trail — the management workflow around the paperwork.
Frequently Asked Questions
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References & Further Reading
Primary UK sources covering the legal and practical framework behind RAMS, risk assessments and method statements.
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Final RAMS must be reviewed and approved by a competent person before use.
Riskora is an assistive document preparation tool. All documents generated must be reviewed, verified, and approved by a competent person before use on site. Riskora does not replace professional safety judgment, and no output should be treated as a legal compliance guarantee.