Thanks again for your high quality replies: two electricians didn't reply to a similar simple question sent to the contact address on their websites and two Building Control departments were useless, should have tried a forum sooner but replies on forums found in various past searches on different topics raised some concerns about their reliability. And as a moderator on two forums, I appreciate the quality of your posts.
Nonetheless, your view as an electrician of what constitutes 'gold plating' differs from mine as a house owner living on a modest pension! I presume that work that could be performed at a modest cost the day before the regs changed suddenly became much more expensive, requiring installation of a new consumer unit, and potentially possibly even requiring a full rewire.
As for risk, I'm pretty sure that many similar houses to mine still have their original fuse boxes, I am certainly not aware of any of my neighbours having had their electrics upgraded. In the context of risk, think of the risks people take every day: driving a car, cycling and even sometimes reliving their youth on powerful motorbikes.
Thanks again for your posts.
This is a tricky one to explain.
From your perspective,
you have an existing circuit that you would like extending a little with a supply for a boiler and an extra socket for general use.
by doing this, it is unlikely to add any additional risk of damage or injury (unless it is intended for use outdoors, where previously there was no way of doing so)
in 1968 when it was originally constructed, it was the best protection that could be provided and fully complied with the regulations of the time.
on a similar theme.
seatbelts, airbags, antilock brakes and radial tyres had not been invented yet and it would take many years for the legislation to catch up and make them mandatory.
I know people who used to run around in a transit van with basically a sofa in the back for the kids to sit on.
with regards to the electrical issue you have, it would have been ok many years ago.
but nowadays, you are likely to be hauled in front of the court for carrying unrestrained people in the back of a van, also for failing to provide at least the minimum protection listed in the electrical regulations for any addition to an installation.
as I said right at the beginning of this thread, it may be possible to do the work required without changing the original fuse box.
however, the new circuit will at the very least require protection from an RCD and the earthing and bonding will need to be checked for suitability.
If someone was replacing a socket or a broken supply to the boiler then they could do it as a like for like replacement because it is a repair.
however, any addition needs to be installed to the latest requirements.
There may be cost implications to doing it correctly but the only people who will be flexible on the requirements for the work are cowboys who are running the risk of being in court for many things, including manslaughter.
