Changes to the EPC regulations

Published: 20th October 2008

As of 1 October 2008, the requirement for an Energy Performance Certificate ("EPC") where a property is sold or let applies to all commercial properties. When a building is to be sold or rented out, the seller or landlord must provide any prospective buyer or tenant with a valid EPC free of charge and at the earliest opportunity.

Developers are required to produce an EPC when a building is erected or converted into fewer or more units and the services in the building are modified. This replaces the requirement to produce an energy rating for new dwellings, contained in the Building Regulations 2000.

In September 2008 the Government announced changes to the EPC regulations. The main changes, which came into force on 1 October 2008, are:

• EPCs included in Home Information Packs will be valid if issued no earlier than three years before the building was first put on the market;
• A non residential property that has come onto the market before 1 October 2008 will not require an EPC until 4 January 2009 at the latest, but if the building is sold or rented before this date an EPC must be commissioned and handed over as soon as possible;
• Changes to the circumstances in which EPCs can be disclosed and to the type of data that energy assessors must register; and
• Changes to the process by which EPCs are notified to building control following construction or modification of a property.

In addition to these changes, Display Energy Certificates (DECs) are now required for public buildings with a total floor area over 1,000 square meters. The DEC must now show the actual total useful floor area of the building, rather than an estimate. The DEC should be displayed at all times in a prominent place clearly visible to the public.