If you smell burning, see sparking, or have water near electrics — turn off the main switch at your consumer unit and call us immediately on 07809 680068.
“Bournemouth emergency callouts cluster around three patterns. First: post-storm power loss in 1930s housing stock across Winton, Moordown, Kinson — the original RCDs are 30+ years old and the first big winter storm of the year is when they fail. Second: HMO 3am callouts in Boscombe, Springbourne, Winton, Charminster — usually a tenant’s appliance tripping the shared RCD, fixed in 30 minutes once we’ve found the offending kettle or extension lead. Third: water-and-electrics in BH4 / BH6 flat conversions, where a leak from the flat above lands on a light fitting downstairs — that’s the highest-risk one and we drop everything for it. Same callout pricing as Poole. Same NICEIC certificate. Honest ETA — if I’m 25 minutes away in Charminster traffic I’ll tell you 25 minutes.”
— Tim Collier, Founder & NICEIC Engineer
Bournemouth Emergency Callout Pricing
Honest pricing on what is already a stressful situation. Every callout fee includes the first hour of labour and full diagnosis — we'll confirm the cost before doing any chargeable repair work.
| When / what | Price |
|---|---|
| Daytime (Mon–Sat 07:30–18:30) — includes first hour | From £150 |
| Evening (after 18:30) & weekend — includes first hour | From £180 |
| Bank holiday — includes first hour | From £200 |
| Hourly labour after first hour (domestic) | From £55/hr |
| Hourly labour after first hour (commercial / HMO) | From £75/hr |
| Parts (RCBO, MCB, RCD, isolator, fuse spur) | At cost + 10% |
| Out-of-hours diagnostic-only (no repair done) | From £120 |
| RCBO swap on the spot (most common single-fix) | From £180 total |
No callout charge if we can't safely access the property or if the fault turns out to be a network supply issue (we'll tell you to ring SSEN on 105 instead — SSEN runs the network across all of BH1-BH11).
What Counts as an Electrical Emergency
Most electrical faults can wait a day or two for a booked appointment. These can't:
- Total power loss with no street outage (check 105 first — if your neighbours are also out, it's SSEN, not your installation)
- Burning smell from a socket, switch, light fitting, or the consumer unit itself
- Sparking or arcing from any electrical accessory
- Main switch keeps tripping and won't reset, or trips immediately on reset
- Exposed live wiring after a leak, DIY accident, or storm damage
- Smoke or scorching visible on a fitting or socket faceplate
- Water + electrics — ceiling leak above a light, flooded utility, anything wet near a board (highest-risk scenario, especially BH4 / BH6 flat conversions)
- Anyone has had a shock, even a mild one
- HMO common-area loss of power (BCP HMO landlords specifically — tenant safety)
Things that feel urgent but probably aren't
- A single circuit has tripped and resets cleanly — book us for a fault-find within a day or two
- One room of lights out, rest of house fine — usually a single MCB or a faulty fitting
- An EV charger that won't start a session — almost always a comms / app issue, phone-triage first
- An EICR has come back unsatisfactory — not an emergency unless C1 is recorded
Response Times Across BH1–BH11
From our Poole base at Unit 45 Balena Close (BH17 7DY) via the A338 / A347 / Wessex Way. Night response (22:00–06:00) is typically faster because the A338 runs free.
| Postcode | Areas covered | Daytime ETA | Night ETA |
|---|---|---|---|
| BH1 / BH2 | Town centre, East Cliff, West Cliff, Lansdowne | 25–30 min | 20–25 min |
| BH3 / BH4 | Talbot Woods, Westbourne village | 22–28 min | 18–22 min |
| BH5 / BH6 | Boscombe, Pokesdown, Southbourne, Tuckton | 28–35 min | 22–28 min |
| BH7 / BH8 | Springbourne, Queens Park, Charminster, Holdenhurst | 26–32 min | 20–26 min |
| BH9 / BH10 | Winton, Moordown, Northbourne, Ensbury Park | 22–28 min | 18–22 min |
| BH11 | Kinson, Bear Cross, West Howe | 18–22 min | 15–18 min |
We give an honest ETA when you call. If we're already on a job we'll tell you and point you to a backup contact rather than leave you waiting indefinitely.
Which Bournemouth Emergency Is It?
The decision aid below covers the six emergency patterns we see most often around BH1-BH11.
| Scenario | Likely diagnosis | Repair approach | Typical cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total power loss after a storm (most common BCP winter callout) | Either RCD trip you can reset, or main switch trip you can't — or genuine cable damage | Reset attempt → fault find → board upgrade or cable repair | From £150 callout + remediation quote |
| 1930s Winton / Moordown semi consumer unit tripping repeatedly | Almost always a failing 30 mA RCD on the original split-load board | On-the-spot RCBO swap or full board upgrade quote | From £150 callout, RCBO swap from £180 total |
| Burning smell from socket / switch in Edwardian Charminster property | Loose terminal, overheating accessory, or rubber-sheathed cable failing at termination | Isolate immediately + accessory replacement + circuit re-test | From £150 callout + £80–£200 accessory work |
| Westbourne or BH4 flat conversion shared-supply outage | Often network-side (SSEN) — check 105 first; if not, shared meter cabinet trip | Diagnostic visit; coordinate with SSEN if cutout-side; board fix if flat-side | From £120 if network-side; from £150 if installation-side |
| BCP HMO 3am power loss (Boscombe / Springbourne / Winton) | Usually a faulty appliance tripping the RCD covering tenant rooms | Find the faulty appliance + clear the trip + advise on prevention | From £180 (out-of-hours) callout |
| EV charger fault (won't start session, RCBO tripped) | Often comms/app issue not electrical — but can be Type-A RCD compatibility | Phone triage first to rule out app issues; on-site if genuine fault | Phone diagnosis free; from £150 if visit needed |
How a Lilliput Bournemouth Emergency Callout Works
Three steps from your call to a safe, certified property. No call centre, no subcontractors — you deal with Tim or Oscar throughout.
1. Phone or WhatsApp Tim — any time
Call 07809 680068 any time, day or night. Tim or one of the team picks up directly — no answering service. We’ll ask you to describe what happened (smell, sound, what tripped, when it started), give you immediate make-safe advice (typically: isolate at the consumer unit), and confirm an honest ETA based on traffic from the Poole base.
2. On-site diagnosis & make safe
Typical 18–35 min arrival to anywhere in BH1-BH11 (faster overnight). We diagnose the fault, isolate any unsafe section immediately, and confirm the fixed price before doing any chargeable repair work. Most callouts are resolved in the first visit — we carry common parts (RCBOs, RCDs, MCBs, fused spurs, isolators) and full test kit. If a part needs sourcing, we make safe, leave the rest of the property functional, and quote a return visit.
3. Repair, certify, document
Repair completed, full test schedule run, NICEIC Minor Works certificate signed and sent the next working day. For landlord callouts we email the certificate and invoice direct to you (not the tenant). For HMOs we email a copy to the BCP licence officer if requested.
What Bournemouth & BCP Customers Say
"Called out Lilliput electrical at the weekend as had no power. Will 100% be using them again."
Google Review
"Called out last minute on a Friday as could smell burning underneath the stairs. Tim and his lads sorted it out and the bill was very reasonable as it was out of hours."
Google Review
"I have used Lilliput electrical for about 11 years. Tim wired my kitchen extension, and put in a consumer unit when I moved into my home. More recently he has carried out a number of smaller jobs including moving a socket and advising about and fitting lighting. He is always courteous and very helpful. This firm is very trustworthy and the work is tidily completed. I have no hesitation in recommending them as genuinely no job is too big or too small."
Google Review
Bournemouth Emergency Callout FAQs
From our Poole base at Unit 45 Balena Close (BH17 7DY) we typically reach Kinson (BH11) and Westbourne (BH4) in 15–22 minutes, Winton / Moordown / Talbot Woods (BH3 / BH9 / BH10) in 18–28 minutes, town centre and East Cliff (BH1 / BH2) in 25–30 minutes, and Boscombe / Southbourne (BH5 / BH6) in 28–35 minutes during normal traffic. Night response (22:00–06:00) is typically 4–8 minutes faster across all postcodes because the A338 / A347 / Wessex Way runs free. We give an honest ETA when you call — if I'm 25 minutes away I'll tell you 25 minutes, not 'we'll be with you shortly'.
Daytime (Mon–Sat 07:30–18:30): from £150 — includes the first hour of labour and full diagnosis. Evening and weekend: from £180. Bank holiday: from £200. Hourly labour after the first hour is from £55/hr. Parts charged at cost plus 10%. We confirm the price before doing any chargeable repair work, so you never get a surprise invoice. No callout charge if we can't safely access the property or if the fault turns out to be a network supply issue (we'll tell you to ring SSEN on 105 — that's their free 24/7 power-cut line).
First: ask them to turn off the main switch at the consumer unit if there's any smell of burning, sparking, smoke, or water near electrics. That makes the property safe immediately. Second: get the address, the postcode, and a brief description of what happened (what tripped / what they could smell / when it started) and call us — we'll attend within 1–2 hours typically across BH1-BH11. We deal with the tenant on-site so you don't need to leave home. We email you the Minor Works certificate and the invoice the next working day. For HMOs specifically: emergency callouts in the BCP HMO licence stock (Boscombe, Springbourne, Winton, Charminster) are common because of the older shared boards — most resolve with an RCBO swap or board upgrade booked in within the week.
It depends on what's tripping and how often. A single circuit tripping that resets cleanly first time is almost never an emergency — book a fault-find for the next working day. The main switch tripping repeatedly and not resetting (or tripping immediately on reset) IS an emergency and almost certainly indicates a failing RCD or a serious circuit fault. The most common Bournemouth pattern is a 1930s split-load board with a single 30 mA RCD that's reaching end-of-life — once it starts nuisance tripping, it usually fails completely within weeks. We can do an emergency RCBO swap on the spot from £180 total, or quote a full <a href="/services/consumer-unit-upgrade/bournemouth/">board upgrade from £450</a> for booked-in work.
Treat this as a genuine emergency and call immediately. Step 1 (before we arrive): turn off the main switch at your consumer unit — even if everything looks fine, water and live electrics is the highest-risk scenario in residential electrics. Step 2: place a bucket under the leak if safe to do so. Step 3: don't touch the affected fitting or any switch in the affected room until we've made it safe. We typically reach BH5 / BH6 within 28–35 minutes during the day, faster overnight. The repair will involve isolating the affected circuit, drying out the fitting, testing the cable insulation upstream, and either replacing the fitting or re-pulling the cable section depending on what the test results show. Coordinate with your plumber for the leak source — we can recommend one if needed.
Yes — we're NICEIC Registered Contractors (Domestic Installer + Approved Contractor under company number 08495604). Anything we install in an emergency callout — an RCBO swap, a remediated cable section, a replaced shower isolator, a replaced consumer unit — goes onto a Minor Works certificate, signed under our NICEIC enrolment, sent the next working day. The certificate is accepted by mortgage lenders, insurance providers, BCP HMO licensing, and home-buyer surveyors. You can verify our registration at niceic.com — search for "Lilliput Electrical Ltd".
If it's the whole street, the fault is almost certainly on the network side (the cables SSEN owns, not your installation). Call 105 first — that's SSEN's free 24/7 power-cut line and they'll tell you immediately whether there's a known outage in your area, an estimated restoration time, and whether they're already on it. If 105 confirms the outage is network-side, we don't need to attend (and we wouldn't charge if we did — we'd just check your installation hadn't been damaged when supply restores). If only your property has lost power but neighbours are fine, that's installation-side and we should attend. We charge £120 for an out-of-hours diagnostic-only callout if no repair is done.
Yes. Commercial callouts across BH1-BH11 are charged at the same callout fee structure (£150 daytime / £180 evening / £200 bank holiday) but the labour rate after the first hour is from £75/hr rather than £55 because commercial work typically requires two engineers for safety on three-phase or fixed-wire faults. Most common BCP commercial emergencies: shop or café main board tripping (often a faulty kitchen appliance), three-phase imbalance fault on industrial premises (BH11 industrial estates), emergency lighting battery failure on routine test, and post-storm cable damage on outdoor signage. We carry common three-phase parts (TPN MCBs, contactors, current transformers) for same-visit fix where possible.