What to include in an electrical estimate: a sole trader's guide
A well-structured electrical estimate protects you, reassures the customer, and satisfies your scheme's record keeping requirements. Here's exactly what to include.
slug: what-to-include-in-an-electrical-estimate title: "What to include in an electrical estimate: a sole trader's guide" description: A well-structured electrical estimate protects you, reassures the customer, and satisfies your scheme's record keeping requirements. Here's exactly what to include. date: 2026-05-05 tags:
- Admin readingTime: 5 min read author: CircuitCapture
An electrical estimate does two jobs at once. It tells the customer what the work will cost and what they're getting — and it creates a record of the scope you agreed before the job started. A vague estimate that wins the job can cause problems when the customer's expectations don't match what you priced. A clear one protects both sides.
Here's what a professional electrical estimate should contain.
The basics every estimate needs
Your business details — trading name, address, contact number, and email. If you're VAT registered, your VAT number. If you're registered with NICEIC, NAPIT, or SELECT, your scheme registration number. That number on your estimate signals to the customer that they're dealing with a registered installer — it's worth including every time.
Customer details — the name and address of the customer, and the address of the property where the work will be carried out if different.
Date — the date the estimate was prepared. Useful if pricing changes and you need to reissue, and required for your own records.
Estimate reference — a simple job number or reference. Makes it easy to track which estimate led to which job in your records.
The scope of works
This is the most important part of the estimate and the one most often underwritten. The scope of works should describe:
- What work will be carried out, in enough detail that the customer understands what they're getting
- What's included — materials, labour, disposal of old equipment where relevant
- What's explicitly not included — related works outside your scope, third-party requirements, making good
For a consumer unit replacement, for example, a clear scope might specify the board specification (18-way RCBO, surge protection device), whether the existing circuits will be tested, what happens if remedial work is identified during installation, and whether the price includes the EIC and notification to the competent person scheme.
Being specific here is not pedantic — it prevents the conversation about why the final invoice is different from the original quote.
Pricing
State the total price clearly, broken down in a way that makes sense for the job. Labour and materials split is standard. VAT should be shown separately if you're VAT registered, with the net amount, VAT amount, and gross total all stated.
If your estimate is subject to variation — for example if the condition of existing wiring will affect the scope — say so explicitly and describe the conditions under which the price might change.
Validity period
Include a line stating how long the estimate is valid. Material prices move. Labour rates change. An estimate from six months ago may not reflect current costs. A validity period of 30 to 60 days is standard for domestic electrical work.
Your scheme registration number
Worth repeating specifically: your NICEIC, NAPIT, or SELECT registration number should appear on every estimate. It confirms to the customer that the work will be certified by a scheme-registered installer, and it ties your estimate to your scheme membership — which matters for your record keeping obligations.
Keeping estimates as records
Under NICEIC, NAPIT, and SELECT requirements, your estimates and job specifications are part of your job record. NAPIT specifically includes the estimate as a document assessors may want to see. Filing your estimates alongside your certification documents — digitally, searchable — is the simplest way to stay assessment-ready.
CircuitCapture generates a structured estimate directly from your pricing visit voice note — line items, totals, your scheme number — formatted and ready to send to the customer. The estimate is stored automatically as part of your job record.
Summary
A complete electrical estimate includes your business details and scheme number, the customer and property details, a clear scope of works with inclusions and exclusions, itemised pricing with VAT, and a validity period. The scope of works is the part most often written too briefly — specificity protects you when the job is done and the invoice is raised.
For guidance on the job brief that should accompany the estimate, see How to write an electrical job brief.