Energy performance certificate
An energy performance certificate (EPC) gives you an idea of the amount of energy and cost needed to heat the property. An EPC contains:
•information about a property’s energy use and typical energy costs using an energy efficiency rating from A (most efficient) to G (least efficient); and
•recommendations about how to reduce energy use and save money.
An EPC is valid for 10 years. Landlords must make valid EPCs available, free of charge, to prospective tenants at the earliest opportunity or wherever information in writing about the property is supplied or a viewing takes place (whichever is the sooner).1EW Reg 6 EPB(EW) Regs
S Reg 5 EPB(S) Regs Where appropriate, the property’s rating must be stated in any advertisement.2Reg 6(2) EPB(EW) Regs An EPC must be accompanied by a recommendation report indicating how the property’s energy efficiency can cost-effectively be improved.3EW Reg 4 EPB(EW) Regs
S Reg 6 EPB(S) Regs You can check a property’s EPC at . If you want to make any of the improvements listed in the EPC, your landlord must consent to certain energy efficiency measures being made.
In Scotland, the EPC must be displayed somewhere in the property – eg, in the meter cupboard.4Reg 9 EPB(S) Regs It should be included in a Tenant Information Pack, along with a copy of any gas certificate and electrical inspection.5Tenant Information Packs (Assured Tenancies) (Scotland) Order 2013 No.20 Subject to certain exceptions, a landlord must not renew or grant a new tenancy after 1 April 2018, and must not continue to let the property after 1 April 2020, where the energy performance of the property is below the minimum energy performance rating of E (see below).6EE(PRP)(EW) Regs In England, if you are a private tenant, you must also be given a copy of the government booklet How to Rent: the checklist for renting in England, available at .7Reg 3 The Assured Shorthold Tenancy Notices and Prescribed Requirements (England) Regulations 2015 No.1646 The duty to supply a certificate does not apply if the landlord reasonably believes that you do not have the means to rent, or are not genuinely interested in renting, the property. Similarly, if you are not a person to whom the landlord would decide to rent, the duty does not apply, providing this is not a form of unlawful discrimination.8Reg 6(2)(an) and (b) EPB(EW) Regs Failure to supply an EPC or a Gas Safety Certificate affects the landlord’s ‘no fault’ right to recover possession of the property at the county court.
Future changes
The Minimum Energy Performance of Buildings Bill proposes all new tenancies must have an EPC of at least Band C from 31 December 2025 and all existing tenancies must be at least Band C from 31 December 2028 where practical, cost-effective and affordable. Social landlords have until 2035 to ensure that a significant amount of their residential properties are at least Band C.