OVERVIEW
Why proximity alone is not enough
Searching for a registered electrician near you is the right instinct. Local knowledge, short travel times, and the ability to follow up in person all make a nearby contractor preferable to someone who has to travel two hours to your property. The problem is that most of the results you see in a standard Google search or on a general trades directory are not verified. A contractor can appear at the top of a maps result, carry a well-designed website, and have dozens of positive reviews, while not appearing on the Safe Electric register at all.
The Safe Electric register, which is the official RECI register maintained by the Electrotechnical Council of Ireland (ECI), is the only authoritative source for verifying that an electrician is legally authorised to carry out notifiable work in Ireland. No other list, directory, accreditation badge, or word-of-mouth recommendation substitutes for a live check of that register. This guide explains how to find a verified electrician in your county and what to confirm before any work begins.
RECI
The official register of authorised electrical contractors in Ireland
26
Counties covered in the electriciansinireland.ie directory
2,000+
RECI-registered contractors available to search right now
Free
Verification tool, no account or registration required
PROXIMITY VS REGISTRATION
What does "registered electrician near me" actually mean?
There are two entirely different things packed into that phrase. Proximity refers to how close the electrician is to your address. Registration refers to whether they are authorised under Irish law to carry out electrical work. The two are completely independent of each other, and the vast majority of directories and maps results only address the first question while ignoring the second entirely.
In Ireland, the relevant authorisation comes from the RECI register, which is administered under the Safe Electric scheme. Safe Electric is the scheme set up by the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU) to regulate electrical contractors carrying out notifiable work on domestic and commercial properties. Any work that is classified as notifiable, that is to say any work that legally requires a completion certificate, must be carried out by a contractor who appears on that register. This is not a voluntary quality standard: it is a statutory requirement under the Electricity Regulation Act and associated regulations.
Notifiable works are those that change or extend the fixed electrical installation of a building. They include a full or partial rewire, any replacement or upgrade of a consumer unit (fuseboard), the installation of a new circuit, the wiring of an extension or new-build, the installation of an EV charging point, and the connection of generation equipment such as solar PV. When a RECI-registered contractor completes any of these works, they are legally required to notify the ESB and to issue you a Notification of Completion of Work, commonly known as the completion certificate. An unregistered electrician, however experienced, cannot legally carry out these works and cannot issue a valid completion certificate. The document they hand you, if they hand you anything at all, has no standing under the scheme.
When you search for a registered electrician near you, the word "registered" is therefore the more important of the two criteria. You need someone with a current RECI number who can issue you a valid certificate. Proximity is a preference. RECI registration is a legal requirement.
Find a RECI-registered electrician in your county
Every electrician on this site is verified against the Safe Electric register. Search by county now.
BROWSE BY COUNTY
How to find a registered electrician in your county
The electriciansinireland.ie county directory is built specifically for this purpose. It covers all 26 counties in the Republic of Ireland and lists only contractors who have been verified against the RECI register. Unlike a general trades directory or a Google maps result, every listing on this site has been cross-referenced with the Safe Electric database, which means that any contractor you find here holds a current RECI number at the time of listing.
Browse your county below to see the registered electricians available in your area. Each county page shows contractor profiles including contact details, the areas they cover within that county, and their RECI number so you can run an instant cross-check on safeelectric.ie before you make contact.
VERIFICATION STEPS
How to verify before you hire
Finding a contractor near you is only the first step. Before agreeing to any notifiable work, there are four things you should confirm. Each one takes a matter of minutes, and together they give you the assurance that the work will be legally certified and that your home is protected.
Search by name on safeelectric.ie
Go to safeelectric.ie and use the contractor search. Enter the name of the business or the individual electrician. The search runs against the live register, so the result reflects current status. If the contractor appears, they are registered and in good standing at that moment. If they do not appear, they are not currently registered, regardless of what they have told you or what their website says.
Check the RECI number matches
When you find the contractor on the register, note the RECI number shown on their profile. Ask the contractor to provide you with this number in writing, either in their quote or via email. The number on the quote must match the number on the register. A mismatch is a serious warning sign: it may indicate that the contractor has borrowed another business's registration details, which is both a regulatory offence and a sign that the quote will not be backed by a valid certificate.
Call the number on the profile
Use the contact number listed on the safeelectric.ie profile or on the electriciansinireland.ie listing rather than relying solely on a number given to you verbally or on an unverified website. This is a small step but it confirms that the contractor you are speaking with is actually associated with the registered business entity rather than someone who has simply noted down a RECI number from an unrelated contractor.
Ask for the completion cert upfront
Before agreeing to the job, ask the contractor directly whether they will issue a Notification of Completion of Work once the work is finished. A RECI-registered contractor will confirm this without hesitation: it is a standard part of how they operate. If a contractor is evasive, says the certificate is optional, or suggests the cert is only needed for certain types of work, treat this as a strong warning that they may not be operating within the scheme.
NOTIFIABLE WORKS
What work requires a registered electrician?
Notifiable electrical work is defined by Irish regulations as any work that changes or extends the fixed electrical installation of a building. A full rewire of a domestic property is the most common example, whether that is a full house rewire in advance of a sale or a partial rewire to address a section of outdated wiring identified during an inspection. Any replacement or upgrade of the consumer unit (fuseboard) is also notifiable, including the installation of a modern RCD-protected consumer unit to replace an older fuse box.
New circuits are notifiable regardless of their purpose. If you are adding sockets to a kitchen, installing under-floor heating, wiring a garden room, or running a dedicated circuit for any appliance, the circuit itself is notifiable even if the appliance connection is minor. Any electrical work carried out as part of a home extension or new-build is notifiable in its entirety, from the temporary supply during construction through to the final sign-off on the completed installation.
EV charger installation is notifiable, which is particularly relevant given the SEAI grant of up to 300 euro available for home charger installation. The SEAI grant can only be claimed where a valid RECI completion certificate exists for the installation, so using an unregistered contractor for an EV charger means forfeiting the grant as well as the legal certification. Solar PV connection, battery storage systems, and heat pump electrical connections are all in the same category: notifiable works that require a RECI contractor and a completion cert before any grant can be processed.
Minor works such as replacing a like-for-like socket, changing a light fitting, or replacing a faulty switch do not require a completion certificate and can be carried out by a competent person without RECI registration. The line sits at work that changes the fixed installation. If you are unsure whether a specific job is notifiable, ask the contractor before work starts: a RECI-registered contractor will be able to tell you immediately.
WARNING SIGNS
Red flags when searching near you
The first and most obvious warning sign is a quote that contains no RECI number. A registered contractor includes their RECI number on all formal correspondence including quotes and invoices. If a quote arrives without a RECI number and the contractor cannot provide one when asked, they are almost certainly not registered. Some contractors will volunteer the number unprompted. Others will provide it immediately when you ask. A contractor who deflects the question, provides a number that does not appear on safeelectric.ie, or claims registration is "in progress" should not be engaged for notifiable work.
Cash-only payment terms are a consistent signal of unregistered operation. RECI-registered contractors issue invoices with their business name, registered address, and RECI number, and they are accustomed to being paid by bank transfer or cheque. A contractor who insists on cash, who asks that the payment not be traceable, or who offers a significantly lower price in exchange for not issuing documentation is operating outside the scheme and will not be in a position to issue a valid cert.
If a contractor does not mention the completion certificate at all during the quoting process, and becomes vague or dismissive when you ask about it, this is a serious concern. The cert is not an optional add-on: it is a legal requirement and an essential part of the service you are paying for. A genuine registered contractor builds the notification process into their standard workflow. They will tell you when to expect the cert and what it covers without needing to be prompted.
Lack of insurance is harder to detect than a missing RECI number but no less important. A RECI-registered contractor is required to hold current public liability insurance as a condition of their registration. If you ask to see proof of insurance and a contractor is unable or unwilling to provide it, treat this the same way you would treat a missing RECI number. The two deficiencies tend to travel together: a contractor who is not registered is also a contractor who is not required to maintain insurance, and in many cases they have none.
COMMON QUESTIONS
Frequently asked questions
How do I find a registered electrician near me in Ireland?
The most reliable way is to use the county directory on electriciansinireland.ie, which lists only RECI-registered contractors verified against the Safe Electric register. Select your county from the grid above to see available contractors in your area. You can then cross-check any contractor on safeelectric.ie using their RECI number before you agree to any work. This two-step process, directory and register check, takes less than five minutes and confirms that the contractor is registered, current, and in good standing.
What is the difference between a registered electrician and an electrical contractor near me?
In Irish regulatory terms, the RECI register is a register of electrical contractors, not individual electricians. The registered entity is the contracting business or sole trader that has passed the Safe Electric assessment. That business may employ multiple electricians on site, but it is the contractor entity that holds the RECI number, the insurance, and the authority to issue completion certificates. When you check safeelectric.ie, you are verifying the business rather than the individual who will actually attend your property. It is worth asking which named RECI contractor will be responsible for certifying the work at your address.
Do I need a registered electrician for small jobs near me?
Minor works, such as replacing a socket, swapping a light fitting, or replacing a faulty switch on an existing circuit, are not notifiable and do not require a completion certificate. Any competent electrician can carry out this type of work. However, once the work changes or extends the fixed installation, for example adding a socket to a new spur, running a new circuit, or installing an EV charger, it becomes notifiable. If you are unsure whether a specific job crosses that line, ask the contractor before any work begins. A registered contractor will give you a straight answer.
How do I verify an electrician is registered before they start work?
Search the contractor's name or their RECI number on safeelectric.ie. The register is live and returns their current status. In addition, ask to see their Safe Electric ID card, which shows their name, their unique RECI number, and the expiry date of their current registration period. Cross-reference the number on the card with the number returned by the safeelectric.ie search to confirm both match. A genuine registered contractor will have no objection to showing you their card and will expect the question.
What should I do if an electrician near me cannot show their RECI number?
Do not proceed with that contractor for any notifiable electrical work. A RECI-registered contractor will have their number readily available on their Safe Electric ID card, their quotes, and their invoices. They will expect you to ask. If a contractor cannot produce a RECI number, or produces one that does not appear on safeelectric.ie, their registration has either lapsed, been suspended, or never existed. Use the county directory on electriciansinireland.ie to find a verified registered contractor in your area as an alternative.
Find a registered electrician near you
Every electrician on this site is RECI-registered and authorised to issue a valid completion certificate.
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