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PAT testing

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oldfern:
Ryedale Woodturners have been considering whether it is worth us buying a PAT testing kit, and getting someone in the club trained as a tester. We sell second hand tools through the club, some of us make table lamps, and we allow the public to use electrical equipment at our demonstrations and open evenings. I wonder if any other clubs have gone down this route or have any useful experience?  There are a lot of different courses on offer - which one is necessary to allow us to do what we want.

Richard_C:
This, from HSE, might help you with some of the questions.

https://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/indg236.htm

And this, although not an 'official' source, seems sensible.

https://www.pat-testing-training.net/articles/making-and-selling-lamps.php

I wonder if gettiing a club member certified is helpful.  Imagine I make a table lamp, the voluntary club tester tests it on a club night but makes a genuine error.  Later an end customer of mine gets a nasty shock, or worse.  Who do they sue?  What liability cover does the volunteer, or the club, have?  Why would anyone volunteer unless that were clear?  Thinking aloud, I wonder if a hands-on club night might be preceeded by a tick box visual inspection of the lathe and would that be sufficient?  The club can demonstrate that it has taken reasonable care in a low risk environment and (presumably) unmodified lathes in the state they were when manufactured.

This is just thnking aloud though, maybe someone with detailed knowledge of club liability and insurance can weigh in.

Paul Hannaby:
Anyone doing PAT testing should be "competent". That doesn't mean they need to be a qualified electrician but in the event of an issue, you may be asked to prove their competence. I do PAT testing and would consider myself competent due to previous experience/training etc.

You could test your own appliances but you will probably find the existing club insurance doesn't cover a club member to carry out that activity so you might need to consider additional cover (and cost).

Visual inspection alone is not sufficient for class 1 appliances (such as a lathe) but the frequency of PAT testing can vary depending on the conditions of use.

If the club is made responsible for the electrical safety testing/certification, the club would be sued and for a standard association run by committee, all the committee members would be jointly liable for any debts incurred by the club.

oldfern:
Thanks Paul. Food for thought.

oldfern:
Thanks for the links Richard. And your scenarios.

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