Charity shops can benefit from PAT Testing small electrical appliances and selling them on to new customers. You just need to make sure what you sell is safe. A competent person can do this by:
In the interests of recycling it also makes perfect sense to re sell used appliances. People often upgrade items they have in the home even when they are in good working order. Some have unwanted gifts which might only be thrown away; so it’s great if a charity can benefit from these kinds of sales and it keeps them from the landfill.
Any Charity Shop can do PAT Testing! You just need to know exactly what’s involved and how to do it. There is no formal qualification required. You just need to be competent. You can read more about this on the HSE (Health & Safety Executive) website here Frequently asked questions.
The best place to start is by doing our Free Online PAT Testing course Click Here The course is completely free to do and starts with an introduction to PAT Testing. It takes you through to exactly what equipment you need to PAT Test and exactly how to do it. It even includes the basics such as how plugs are wired etc. The course takes about 25 minutes and providing you pass, you have the option of purchasing a certificate for £30 (Including vat) upon completion. You can also buy our standard PAT Testing kit at the reduced price of £294 (Including vat) saving £25 off to normal price.
If you don’t pass the course, and the content seems a bit tricky, don’t worry! You just need to seek some more formal training. This involves attending a formal training course where a trainer teaches you how to PAT Test in person. They typically only take one day. Parker Bell runs a one day training course which is
Trading Standards has a very useful website explaining the best way to make sure electrical appliances are safe before selling them. You can click HERE to see the website. For various reasons a manufacturer may recall an item. You will have seen recent media coverage of washing machines and tumble dryers that pose a safety or fire risk, that have been recalled by their manufacturer. It is therefore very important that One of the first things you need to check is whether the appliance has been recalled by the manufacturer. The Government have a list HERE.
There is another website that helps you to check whether appliances have been recalled, which is run by the Charity Electrical Safety First. You can access this HERE
Watch our video which shows you step by step:
It makes sense to keep a record of the items that you test, there is no need to label the items you have unless you think it makes sense to. Just ensure you have clear procedures that show the customer and if necessary Trading Standards; what tests you have done, and make sure that non tested and tested appliances cannot be mixed up! Always have a valid calibration certificate for the PAT Tester you are using, as tests carried out using a PAT Tester that hasn’t been calibrated are void.
If you would like free advice regarding PAT Testing, please don’t hesitate to call Dale on 01392 364933. When you call have the PAT Tester and the appliance you are PAT Testing in front of you, and we can take you through the test step by step. It’s helpful if you know the Class of the appliance before you call.