BEIS seeks views on performance of EPCs

As pledged in the Government’s Clean Growth Strategy, the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) has launched a consultation on the role of Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) in buildings. They want to understand the causes for discrepancies in EPCs for the same or similar buildings and where the potential issues come from. Another aim is to encourage action through an improved format of EPC recommendations and their relevance.

Working towards more energy efficient buildings reduces UK energy demand, improves economic resilience, and contributes to carbon reduction targets. The Clean Growth Strategy sets out ambitious policies and proposals to reduce building energy use – this is all underpinned by the extended use of EPCs.

Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) are a widely used measure of the energy performance of buildings, in the residential, commercial and public sectors, and are a key tool in promoting energy performance improvements in buildings.

Already widely used, the use of an EPC is growing, and other policies put in place. For example, the minimum energy efficiency standards (MEES), which require landlords of privately rented properties to improve these to EPC Band E from 2018, came into force in April this year.

Aims of the Call for Evidence

The Clean Growth Strategy published last year, has committed to a Call for Evidence seeking views on extending EPCs to other trigger points and how EPCs could be further improved in the light of new sources of data and capabilities.

The aims of this Call for Evidence are:

1. to gain evidence on how the current EPC system is working;
2. to gather information on the suitability of the current system of EPCs for both their current and emerging uses in measuring building energy performance; and
3. to obtain feedback on suggestions for improvement.

This Call for Evidence also sets out to understand what is needed from EPCs. Are changes needed to the quality assurance arrangements to insure data quality? Are EPCs still an important tool to encourage building owners to improve energy performance? Is the cost and ease of EPC procurement a barrier to compliance?

The Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy would like to hear from

• building owners and occupiers in both the domestic and non-domestic sectors
• estate agents and others involved in the sale or lease of buildings
• all parts of the energy efficiency products supply chain – EPC assessors, accreditation bodies, software providers and enforcement bodies
• anyone else who regularly uses EPCs

The consultation closes on 19th October 2018, for a full description, click here.

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