The evidence suggests a very low rate of upgrading and replacement of domestic electrical installations, but how big is the problem? Based partly on FEEDS data, we estimate that the rate of actual replacement and fundamental upgrade amounts to less than 0.6% of the existing housing stock annually. At this rate, it would take more than one hundred years to replace all of Europe’s deficient wiring!

While the calculation method we have used is not particularly precise, it is enough to demonstrate that there is a desperate need for more upgrading of domestic electrical installations in Europe. A return to more sustainable levels of new building would help, but the core concern must be how to address the electrical safety issue in Europe’s huge stock of ageing, and long-enduring, housing.