Energy Performance Certificates

Since April 2018 all new tenancies and tenancies becoming periodic will require an EPC with a minimum E rating. A copy of the EPC must also be given to the tenant at or before the commencement of any tenancy.

There is an excellent article here and you should be aware of the serious implications, people with older and/or rural properties should be especially careful with these types of properties more likely to have a low rating.

You can check to see if you have an EPC here as well as seeing what the current EPC is.

We have composed some more information below for you but in a nutshell:

You can arrange these yourself provided you use a qualified person but we can organise them for you and charge £75.00 with no V.A.T. as we have two local independents who carry the checks out on our behalf. As usual they are both people known to us and trusted.

Further Information

There are many areas to consider when calculating the ratings for an EPC for every home, as each house is different.

The basic criteria for energy assessment include:

Building Construction Age of construction Number of windows and type Volumetric calculation of all floors Method of heating and controls used Levels of insulation (lofts and walls) Thermal properties of adjacent buildings Heat losses Fixed lighting efficiency Renewable energy sources e.g. solar panels, domestic wind turbines

The factors detailed above are noted, and, using computer software an overall rating can be obtained, together with recommendations for improvement where required.