How much does it cost to get an electrician to remove and replace a fusebox/consumer unit? We know how much this work costs because we recently had this work completed for us on one of the houses we rent out.

We also took the opportunity to ask the sparky a few probing questions about this type of work.

Tip: While this page is all about fuse boxes, we have a separate and recently updated guide to house rewiring costs that you can find here.

On this page you will discover:

• The typical cost to replace a fuse box.
• Cost of the materials.
• Cost for bonding and whether you need it upgrading.
• Info about testing and fault finding.
• How long the work will realistically take.

Here’s what Mark, an electrician from Farnham told us:

Replacing a fusebox won’t in itself solve all the problems with an older installation. Modern consumer units are very sensitive to changes in the electrical current, so if your wiring installation is very old, you may find that the new unit trips frequently. To avoid this, the installation should be fully tested prior to changing the unit. This can take several hours but is a necessary step, especially in older homes.

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Electrician’s Work Schedule

Below is an example of a works schedule, it includes all the work involved with a fusebox change:

1. Initial visual inspection of the existing electrics.
2. Fault finding and testing of the existing electrics.
3. Report to the customer and offer quotation for fusebox and any extra work that may be required such as bonding/earthing.
4. Remove and replace the fusebox.
5. Test the circuits, bonding and earthing and sign off the work with a building control notification certificate.

Fault Finding

This really should be done before the unit is replaced so your electrician knows what, if any, issues will need to be corrected first.

Installing a new box first can lead to unexpected charges when your electrician does his final fault finding and locates a whole host of issues that need to be fixed before the work is signed off.

Bonding

Here is an explanation of bonding:

Electrical bonding is the practice of intentionally electrically connecting all exposed metallic items not designed to carry electricity in a room or building as protection from electric shock. If a failure of electrical insulation occurs, all bonded metal objects in the room will have substantially the same electrical potential, so that an occupant of the room cannot touch two objects with significantly different potentials. Even if the connection to a distant earth ground is lost, the occupant will be protected from dangerous potential differences.

When replacing a fusebox, your electrician will need to check the existing bonding is up to standard, upgrades will add to the cost.

Earthing

Earthing is where a direct conducting path is created between your electrical installation and the ground. This protects you from shocks.

The earthing in your property will need to be checked as part of a new fusebox installation.

How Long Does it Take to Replace a Fusebox?

This depends on the condition of the existing installation.

However, we can estimate that for a typical 3-bed house the work will take around half a day.

What About the Cost of the Materials?

A fully loaded consumer unit/fusebox will cost around £130, and meter tails (might be needed) will cost another £15. Main earth upgrade cables are an extra nominal cost.

Do I Need to Notify Building Control?

If your electrician isn’t a Competent Person Scheme member then your local building control will need to inspect the work before it can be signed off, this can cost several hundred pounds and isn’t a desirable option.

If however, your electrician is with a scheme, (as most are) he/she can self-certify that the work meets current regulations and provide you with a copy of the certificate that is sent to building control.

Scheme membership will cost your electrician £450 +vat per year and £3 per certificate that is created.

New Fusebox Cost

You can expect a new consumer unit/fusebox, professionally installed, tested and the work notified to set you back around £600 inc VAT.

If however, your existing wiring is up to standard and all the testing goes smoothly, you could end up paying less although anything below £400 inc VAT would be very unusual for this type of work.

You should also consider the extra charges you may need to pay, bonding work and replacing the meter tails will add extra cost if they’re needed.

Advice

Obviously, there are limitations to what work an electrician can do when replacing a fusebox/consumer unit.

A new consumer unit isn’t a replacement for a house rewire and if your electrics are really that out of date and dangerous you may find you need much more than a new consumer unit.

We always suggest having a full check of your existing wiring before having any work carried out, you’ll get peace of mind and will avoid any unexpected charges.

Can I Relocate My Fusebox?

Yes, but this requires significant rewiring and there are very strict rules about where a fusebox can and can’t be placed. You’ll need to get a custom quote for relocations.

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Where’s The Best Place to Get an Electrician’s Quote?

Our guideline prices for electrical work are not an offer of work.

There are many different websites that can use to check the credentials and ratings of local tradespeople before sourcing quotes.

Rated People and Checkatrade are very popular services in the UK. You could also search via a scheme such as the Competent Persons Scheme or the Niceie.

Our partner can also help you source competitive prices from reviewed and rated businesses in your area.

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This guide was written by Danny Woodley and was last updated in April 2022.

Don’t forget; we have price guides for hundreds of home improvement projects.

Explore our full list of detailed price guides here.