Ecscard Avis 

Sums up this day and age why the most simplest of things are made so overly complicated by layers of complete Burkes that have no knowledge of the industry they are in and who’s backsides are the same shape as their office chair. Every time we renew a card for our staff, who are all industry trained and experienced we are told we need to sit more exams, all off which are at a cost and time off work. Ironically when we get onto a site no one looks at our cards they are photocopied and we sign to say we have completed an induction. A recent application the employee has 41 years experience, 4 years apprentice trained, City & Guilds qualified, Director of a company and is told that is all irrelevant and you need to take an exam.

The ECS Card Scheme resembles a remake of Monty Python, and at another cost to small businesses.

No wonder there is a severe shortage of labour across most trades with these clowns running the show.

Appalling website - error after error - Only once I managed about 5 of the H+S questions before it timed out again - absolute waste of time.
Timed out again saying "contact our support" First thing on the contact page - "Due to a high volume of calls it may be quicker to read through the FAQ's" - Marvellous

Paid for my health & safety test and the portal for the exam is down!

50 questions in 30 mins turned into 50 questions in 18 minutes due to the time it takes to load the next question. Utterly scandalous way of doing things, expectations of doing the exam and not having adequate time to complete it. Now I have to wait for manual inviligation which can take up to 3 days. No doubt I'll fail this after reading the reviews below. An absolute money racketeering ring. Needs to be reformed by persons who actually know what to do.

Not fit for purpose, H&S online test procedure is just a massive stressful experience.
Keep looking at your webcam else it’s a fail, get distracted when you’re expected to click the target button that appears randomly to prove you actually looking at the screen, not clicking immediately = fail.
Finished my test and was waiting for result to be greeted by “please wait”, 20 minutes later still waiting starring at webcam.
Tried phoning for support but no one picked up the phone, closed the website in the end as totality fed up with the whole experience.
Still don’t know if I’ve passed or failed, but to be honest, I couldn’t care less anymore. Hope I never had to go on the website ever again. 

Tried to renew an existing card and had to resit an online exam. The software was very problematic to load which took at least 9 attempts. Then the software kept crashing while taking the exam. The whole experience was incredibly stressful as the test is timed and you are videotaped to ensure you are not cheating. Under such conditions it is impossible to read the questions and answer them correctly and course I failed the test as well. Total nightmare to deal with. No customer support at all just a total waste of money. I have tried to ring them but the call gets dropped. I have emailed but no response.
I can only assume that the software is produced on the cheap somewhere outside the U.K. and it doesn’t work.
It’s typical UK customer service. A bloody disgrace.

Ok, so issue has hopefully been resolved - I had a JIB gold card that has partial credentials printed on it went sent even though I was emailing previously for help…

Anyways, after a complaint made, ECS complain department was very quick, very helpful and resolved the issue promptly… thank you Nicola Budds

Surprised ECS managed to get a 1.7/5 stars. They make it so difficult to get on site, and offer little help. One person says it’s gone through, then it gets put on hold again and told I need to spend more money to do something extra that wasn’t required last time I renewed. They are a joke!

ILLITERATE!
UNPROFESSIONAL!
THIEVES!
GOVERNING BODY OF GREEDY PIGS!
MUST BE SHUT DOWN!

After I passed my assessment exam I went to renew my ecs card. After a couple of weeks they informed me that they needed verification of an old city and guilds 15th edition exam and that I had to go to City and guilds and get it verified and to send them proof of this. When I looked into this the City and guilds wanted £44 to do this. So I went back to the ecs and told them as it was an old exam and I had the 17th edition qualification could they just take it off the system. They said no.so I had to pay it to get my card. When I sent ecs the proof that the qualification was genuine in a letter the City and guilds sent to me I forwarded this onto ecs and they replied that they would have to get onto the City and guilds themselves to confirm it was genuine. Why couldn't they have done this in the first place. And save me the £44..its all a con between the two companies. And they didn't even put the qualification on the back of the card.

68 years of age , qualified electrician for 48 years , kept up to date with all qualifications for my Gold Card , 2391 , 18th edition plus REAL electrical qualifications , unable to renew because I need a safety awareness course. They can kiss my ass

the ECS website isnt working and wont upload my application to get a gold card, its costing me money and have had no help from them even with loads of phone calls and emails!

Due to covid19 and work issues, I had to cancel my card application. Be warned ECS.org say they do not issue refunds, YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED. Thanks for kicking me why I'm down, typical money grabbing corporate theft, 0/10

Awful service. Long wait times to sit the H+S test. Test result hasn't been uploaded so i'm unable to apply, even though i've got an email confirmation that i passed. They don't answer phones, or emails, or have any online assistance. absolute extortion. Currently there's a shortage of lorry drivers, in a few years there will be a shortage of electricians, and the ECS will be largely to blame.

Absolute scam, the questions are an afront to our city and guilds knowledge and skills.
These cards are just a way to suck money from you through bulls*it legislation.
I will never do this again.

Chris Naylor provides terrible service. He is unsupportive, rude, arrogant and should not be employed.

Very disappointing dealing with this organisation, very low levels of service, if any. Would recommend numerous other schemes.

When you apply for a upgraded/different card with new qualifications and H&S exemptions, they take your money and send you a "replacement card". This basically means they update the qualifications and card type but give you your old cards expiration date. So instead of paying and getting a new card with 3 year validity, you only get a few months before having to pay them a fee again! What the heck?
And don't even think about emailing them. The website says they aim to respond within 2 weeks to emails. That's if you're lucky..

ECS Card are the biggest crooks ever the whole company needs to be investigated by the trading standards for stealing people's money. They downgraded my ECS card when I renewed it and told me my City & Guilds 2365 Level 3 qualification is not recognised by the JIB so I contacted the JIB and they told me that it is. So ECS issued me with an Electrical Labourer's card which was a lower grade than I had before. Now I'm earning less money just because of my card. It's a shame this is the only company that you can get your electrical card from as if trying to get qualified isn't hard enough already.

ABSOLUTE COBBLERS..!
This is a box ticking exercise for money to be made.
If you are not an electrician - Yet related discipline (Their words) They have no idea how to process you.
They encompass telecommunications under this card & leave you in the dark.
Ask you questions about electrical systems?? Even though you are not an electrician - Nor have any electrical skills.
Any "comms" qualifications you hold are not recognised because they are not electrical qualifications.
PIECE OF Crap system not valid for people not in the electrical game.