Safe electrical isolation
The process of disconnecting electrical equipment from all sources of electrical supply and proving that it is dead before work begins. A fundamental electrical safety procedure required by the Electricity at Work Regulations.
Also known as
By jurisdiction
UK HSE
“safe electrical isolation”Exact equivalentRegulation 12 of EAWR 1989 requires that no person shall work on electrical equipment while it is live unless it is unreasonable in all circumstances for it to be dead. The safe isolation procedure involves: switch off; isolate; lock off; prove dead. HSE guidance describes the four-step process.
Irish HSA
“safe electrical isolation”Close equivalentThe General Application Regulations 2007 (Part 3, Chapter 3) require that electrical systems are made safe before work is carried out on them. The safe isolation procedure (isolate, lock off, prove dead) is the standard approach required by good practice and the regulations.
US OSHA
“safe electrical isolation”Close equivalentOSHA 29 CFR 1910.333(b)(2) requires that before work is done on electrical equipment, it be deenergised and locked out or tagged out under an energy control program meeting 1910.147. The OSHA electrical safety isolation process is part of the broader lockout/tagout standard rather than a standalone electrical-specific isolation procedure.
Practitioner note: Prove dead with an approved voltage indicator, proved on a known source before and after the test. Lock off and keep the key personally.
Nearest equivalent in other frameworks
- →isolation-lockout-tagout (OSHA — same concept, different terminology)