What are the old wiring colours in the UK?
Before 2006, UK fixed wiring used red for live and black for neutral; since 2006 it is brown for live and blue for neutral, matching Europe. Red-and-black wiring is not automatically dangerous, but it dates the installation to at least two decades old, which makes an inspection worthwhile.
The colour change came with the 2004 amendment to the wiring regulations, mandatory from April 2006: red live became brown, black neutral became blue, and three-phase gained its own new set. Earth remained green-and-yellow throughout (and bare earth in old cable runs earlier still).
What the colours tell you: they are a dating tool, not a verdict. Red-and-black means the circuit was installed before 2006, and in practice most of it is considerably older. Well-installed 1980s and 1990s PVC cable in red and black can test perfectly well; the colours simply say 'this predates the modern era, check the rest'.
The transitional hazard worth knowing: houses part-rewired around the changeover contain both schemes, and junctions where old red meets new brown are where DIY mistakes concentrate. Any such interface should carry the warning notice the regulations require and, more usefully, should have been made by someone qualified.
The colours that trump everything: rubber or fabric insulation in any colour means pre-1960s cable at the end of its physical life. Colour tells you the era; insulation condition tells you the urgency, and an EICR measures rather than guesses.
More in rewiring & fuse boxes, or browse all 40 questions on the FAQ index.
Price your project
Two quick steps. We reply within one working day.
No account, no obligation. We only use this to prepare your quote.
Ready to price your electrical work?
Tell us the job and your postcode. We reply within one working day with an honest cost bracket, then a fixed written quote.