Range cooker tripping the electrics: what our engineers find
These figures come from NAC's own repair records: 108 range cooker jobs our engineers attended for this fault. Here is what they found, what fixed it and what it typically cost.
When a range cooker trips the electrics, the cause our engineers find most often is a heating element that has developed a fault to earth. Over time the insulation inside an element can break down, letting electricity leak to the metal of the cooker, and the safety switch in your fuse box cuts the power. It can be the grill, the fan oven element or the base element, and it is common to find that other elements in the same cooker are wearing out too. Now and then engineers also find a blown oven bulb and its holder, or a fault in the power supply to the cooker that needs an electrician.
To find the cause, an engineer pulls the cooker out and tests each element in turn, disconnecting any suspect element to see whether the tripping stops. Faulty elements are replaced, and the cooker is then heated up on each setting to make sure it reaches temperature without tripping. The right elements often have to be ordered, so the new parts are usually fitted at a second visit. Using all of your oven compartments regularly may help the elements last longer.
Written by our engineers from these jobs.
- Jobs attended
- 108
- Confirmed repairs
- 76
- This is not a success rate. Jobs inside their 60-day window, jobs still being classified, jobs held for review and visits that didn't end in a repair aren't counted.
- Fixed at the first appointment
- 9%
- about 1 in 11 of our repairs
- Typical total paid by customers
- £209 to £362
- including parts and VAT, from 74 repairs
What's usually behind it
The causes our engineers found and fixed, as a share of our 76 confirmed repairs for this fault.
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Earth fault in heating element: about 4 in 5 of our repairs, from 64 jobs.
84%
We only list causes with enough repairs behind them, so the shares won't add up to 100%.
About the price. £209 to £362 is the typical total paid by customers, including parts and VAT: the middle half of what customers paid on 74 of these repairs. Repairs paid for by manufacturers and insurers aren't counted, because that work is charged at contract rates. It's a guide, not a quote. Your engineer confirms a fixed price before any work starts.
Before you check anything yourself
- Switch the range cooker off and unplug it, or turn it off at the isolator switch, before you touch anything. Our guide to safely isolating an appliance walks you through it.
- If it involves the mains supply, sealed parts, or you're not confident at any point, stop and book a qualified engineer rather than risk injury or further damage.
- If it's a gas appliance and you can smell gas, don't use it. Open the windows and call the National Gas Emergency Service on 0800 111 999.
Rather leave it to us?
- Fixed-price quote before any work starts
- Same or next-day visits where available
- UK-wide engineer coverage