Guides / PAT certificate records

A PAT Logbook guide. PAT Logbook creates certificate and site asset-register PDFs on iPhone and iPad. Its certificate repeats failed items in a separate summary, giving you a clear starting point for the handover.

What "PAT" covers

Portable appliance testing is common shorthand for checking the safety of in-service electrical equipment. The right approach may include user checks, a formal visual inspection and electrical tests. HSE notes that some faults are visible and some can only be found by testing, so a reading on its own is not a complete account of the examination.

Useful fields for a certificate or test record

The fields should help identify the job and item, reconstruct the competent person's decision and make any required action obvious. Useful groups include:

• Job: client, site, address, test date and the person who carried out the work.
• Item: asset ID, description, location, make, model, serial number and equipment class where relevant.
• Examination: the visual checks performed and any defect or limitation found.
• Measurements: the test performed, reading and unit, with enough context to interpret it correctly.
• Outcome: pass, fail or another clearly defined result, plus the action taken for an unsafe or unavailable item.
• Follow-up: the next review or test decision and the risk factors used, where the duty-holder chooses to record them.

Not every field or electrical test applies to every item. Equipment construction, environment, use and previous results all matter. The competent person should choose and interpret the checks, rather than treating a template as a test procedure.

Make failed items difficult to miss

Use a written result, the defect or reading that led to it, and the action actually taken. Do not rely on red shading or write "client informed" without saying who received the information. Keep items that were unavailable for examination separate from those examined and failed.

For low-risk workplaces, HSE INDG236, page 2 advises removing damaged or faulty equipment from use without delay, followed by competent repair or disposal to prevent further use. A note on a certificate records that action; it does not carry it out.

Check the handover before leaving

1. Match each failed-item entry to its asset ID and location so the recipient can find it.
2. Check that the written result and defect appear in the exported document, not only in the app.
3. Separate completed action from outstanding work. Name the person responsible for follow-up.
4. Record how and when the recipient was told. Keep a copy of the issued record.
5. When follow-up occurs, add its date and supporting record. Keep the original failure history.

In PAT Logbook, open the generated certificate PDF and check its failed-items summary against those item records before sharing. Use your organisation's handover notes for any extra details that the document does not capture. A failed-items summary helps find the rows; it cannot confirm that the recipient has removed the equipment or completed the follow-up.

Use the history when deciding the next review

A later pass should not erase the earlier failure or become a promise of future safety. HSE INDG236, page 4 explains that a test indicates condition at the time and puts the next test decision with the employer on a risk basis.

The IET's public explanation of its fifth-edition Code of Practice includes previous inspection, testing and maintenance records among the factors used to choose intervals. Give the duty-holder that history, including faults and subsequent action, rather than automatically adding twelve months to every item.

Keep records usable outside the software

Before relying on any record system, export a real job and open the result elsewhere. A PDF is useful for a fixed, human-readable certificate. A structured export such as CSV is useful for sorting, checking and moving rows. A complete backup serves a different purpose: restoring the working data, relationships and attachments after loss or replacement.

Store copies in a location the responsible organisation controls, use clear filenames and retain the context that links each item to its site, test session and result.