If you’re getting ready to sell a property, settle an insurance claim, or just want peace of mind about your home’s wiring, you’ll need a Certificate of Compliance (COC). The good news: most COC failures aren’t dangerous electrical faults — they’re fixable compliance issues that take a day or two to sort out. Here’s what actually trips people up, in order of how often we see it.

1. Distribution board labelling and access

Every circuit on your DB should be clearly and durably labelled, with a circuit schedule inside the door. Handwritten or missing labels are one of the most common — and easiest to fix — failures. Also make sure every DB on the property is unlocked and accessible on inspection day. We can’t test what we can’t open.

2. Earthing and bonding

This is the one that catches people off guard, because it’s invisible day-to-day. Hot water cylinders, metal pipework, and (in bathrooms especially) baths, taps, and towel rails all need to be properly bonded back to the main earth terminal. If a previous installer skipped this, or a geyser was replaced without re-checking the bonding, it’ll show up in the inspection.

3. RCD (earth leakage) protection

All socket outlet circuits, bathroom circuits, and outdoor circuits need 30mA RCD protection, and it needs to actually trip within spec when tested — not just have a test button that clicks. Older installations sometimes have no earth leakage protection at all, or units that are rated too high (100mA or 300mA) to meet the current standard.

4. Damaged or exposed wiring

Cracked plug covers, light fittings missing their covers, twisted or taped joints instead of proper junction boxes — these are easy to spot and easy to fail on. They’re usually quick fixes, but they do need to be sorted before a certificate can be issued.

5. Outdated colour coding

If your home still has old red/black wiring instead of the current brown/blue/green-yellow standard, it doesn’t automatically fail — but it needs to be clearly re-identified with coloured sleeves at every termination point so there’s no ambiguity about which conductor is which.

A quick self-check before you book

• Every DB is unlocked and labelled
• Every room has at least one working light, with covers in place
• No visible cracked plugs, switches, or exposed wiring
• Geyser, pipes, and bathroom fittings look properly earthed/bonded (if in doubt, this one needs a professional eye)

Run through this before your inspection date and you’ll avoid the most common, easily preventable delays. If you’re selling, it’s worth getting your COC sorted early in the process rather than waiting for an accepted offer — that way there’s no pressure if something needs fixing.

At Anictom, every inspection is checked against SANS 10142-1 with the help of VoltFlow, our own AI-assisted compliance tool — so nothing gets missed on the day, and you get a clear report either way.