Back in around 2000 some one said to me that devices needed to be type tested when in the control of an ordinary person. But I have not found where it says that.
Clearly if DIY'ing then your not classed as an ordinary person, you have extra skills, but in real terms who cares unless something goes wrong, things like the Emma Shaw case are thankfully rare, and I certainly considered things after the case was reported, and realised I had also been using an electricians mate for things which one could say he was not trained to do.
I made up many panels to control machines, and I decided what was safe, maybe I was wrong, but no one was injured, so there was no court case to determine if I had made errors.
It is the same with every trade, I remember back in the 80's talking to a mechanic after an axle had come out of a wagon, the court said the mechanic involved had not used a proper spanner, but had used a chisel to tighten the bearing nuts, but everyone did back then, few garages had the special box spanners for the job.
As tradesmen we have to make the call, there are two considerations, is it safe, and if I do it will it return to bite me. We see so many jobs worth, but in real terms it can be just that, so no one can say that's OK go ahead, if it does not follow the letter of the regulations we should point it out, however you need to also use some common sense.
