Providing a comprehensive report after an electrician has made repairs or changes to a home or building is a fairly onerous requirement. Not only does the electrician have do the actual wiring or repairs but they now also needs to provide a report, termed the Electrical Safety Certificate, as specified by the relevant organisation in each state. They need to give a copy of the report to the customer and they need to keep a copy for their own records.

Preparing this certificate is no simple task, as it must indicate that all required visual checks have been made and the electrical tests done, including the actual test readings where appropriate. All told, this can add up to quite a lot of work and it means that the electrician must be well organised to do the tests and then create the report for the customer, often after hours when all the "proper work" has been done.

To indicate just how much work can be involved, consider a typical large home these days with multiple power and light circuits. If it is a complete wiring job, each power point and light socket needs to be tested and noted on the report.