EPC Energy Performance Certificates : Find Out How Energy Efficient Your House is

The UK has a simpler way to assess your home’s energy efficiency, it’s called an EPC. You can now check if your home is energy efficient with an online questionnaire, followed by a home assessment. This guide will explain how you can find out if your house is energy efficient, and what you need to do about it.

Check EPC register: with just a postcode

Completed Energy Performance Certificates are available once an assessor comes to check the property. The certificate is valid for 10 years and can be used multiple times in that period.  Using just a postcode, to find the details currently on the register, both current and expired for free, visit the .Gov government website here to find an existing EPC for the property.

EPC for a home
Energy Efficiency

Do I need an EPC?

A valid Energy Performance Certificate is required in order to market your property for sale or rent, and this applies to both residential and commercial properties. It is now also necessary to have a valid EPC if your property already has existing tenants.

If you want to remortgage a property, the majority of lenders will require you to have an EPC performed on the property.

If you are intending to sell your house or to rent out, you may face a fine if you do not have an Energy Certificate or if your Energy Certificate has expired.

How do you check if your home is energy efficient?

The first step is to check the government website to see if an energy performance certificate (EPC) already exists for the property you’re looking into, and when the assessment was done.  Once you’ve got the rating, it’s then easy to identify areas where you can save energy or switch to a more efficient heating system.

Alternatively, you can compare your home to homes of the same type and use statistics to identify where you may be wasting energy and where you can make improvements. Once you know what to do, it’s easy to lower your energy costs and help the environment.

Finding out what rating you get means you will take the first step toward finding out if your house is energy efficient.

What is an EPC?

An EPC is a detailed report following a site assessment of a domestic property that gives energy efficiency ratings from A-G. The ratings from A (most efficient) to G (least efficient) enable you to consider measures to upgrade the energy efficiency of your home, the potential costs of these, and what savings you can likely make on energy usage.

Get an EPC (Energy Performance Certificate)

An EPC is needed when a property is built or is marketed to be sold or put up for rent. To get the certificate, an assessment needs to be done by an accredited energy assessor. 

Booking an EPC inspection is straightforward. Simply visit the website of the assessing company and click on the EPC link, which will direct you to a brief and simple form that will provide you with an instant quote. They will need some information and payment in advance.

Following the Assessor’s initial phone call, they will schedule a follow-up appointment to call you and gather all of the necessary information to proceed with the EPC assessment.

Understanding the EPC ratings

Energy Performance Certificates are rated on a scale from A to G. A is the most energy efficient home, with the lowest fuel bills, and G is the least energy efficient, with the highest energy bills.

The same scale is used to calculate the environmental impact of a home’s carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. The majority of properties in the United Kingdom are in bands D or E.

There is also an EPC recommendation form included to show occupants how to improve their energy efficiency levels. The EU directive requires cost-effective improvements to reduce fuel costs and CO2 emissions.

You may be able to claim grants to upgrade energy efficiency measures in your home. Ofgem’s website has a complete list of ways you can apply.

photo of loft insulation roll being laid

How much does an energy performance certificate cost?

The seller or landlord needs to arrange the EPC and there is no set fee.  Prices range from £40 to £120 depending on the size and type of the property, and location. 

If you fail to provide an EPC to potential buyers, you risk a fine and extra costs if it is found that measures were needed to upgrade efficiency.

You will be unable to rent out a property if an EPC isn’t available or energy efficiency improvements details in the report have not been carried out.

A guide to the main EPC types

The first thing to know when checking if your house is energy efficient is the main types of EPC. If you want to check the energy efficiency of your home, you can often rely on a rating from a qualified assessor.

From here, you’ll need to know the main types of energy performance rating: – A-rated homes are most likely to be energy efficient. These homes have annual energy consumption that is less than or equal to their listed energy consumption.

B-rated homes are likely to be energy efficient. These homes have an annual energy consumption that is between 80% and 100% of their listed energy consumption.

G-rated homes are probably not energy efficient. These homes have an annual energy consumption that is more than 100% of their listed energy consumption.

Summary

When it comes to energy efficient homes, finding out the rating is key. Knowing the rating will be the first step toward finding out if your house is energy efficient and what work needs to be done to improve it.

Once you’ve got the rating, it’s then easy to identify areas where you can save energy or switch to a more efficient heating system. If you want to check the rating of your home before you get an EPC, you can visit the government website.

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