From 1st October 2008 private landlords letting residential property will be required to provide potential tenants with an Energy Performance Certificate, prior to viewing.
The requirement is set out in regulation 5 of the Energy Performance of Buildings Regulations 2007, which demands that a prospective tenant be provided with an EPC at the earliest opportunity and certainly prior to entering into any contract to rent out the property. The regulation states that the certificate must be provided before the prospective tenant is provided with written details about the property or before the prospective tenant views the property. If the prospective tenant consents the certificate can be provided electronically.
No other part of the HIPS (Home Information Pack) regulations applies to rental property, landlords only need an EPC. EPCs remain valid for 10 years or until another certificate is produced for the same property. Consequently, from 1st October 2008 agents and landlords will need to get EPCs for properties that they are marketing to new tenants, but there should be no need to get EPCs for current tenancies or renewals to the same tenants.
The general experience gained from the introduction of HIPs suggests that there will be no need to produce EPCs for properties already on the market, but the regulations are unclear. The enforcement will come from the Trading Standards departments and failure to have one is a criminal offence, but most observers believe that they will warn and caution prior to legal action.
HCR are offering a £99 plus VAT per EPC service to undertake a survey using approved Energy Assessors and to generate a valid EPC for private landlords, delivered in electronic format. HCR will maintain a copy on file for 10 years. A button will appear on our home page in early September linking you with our Legal & Maintenance Team who are managing this service.
If you want more information or to book your EPC , contact Rachel Blyth on 01256 313770 or email her at rblyth@hcr.co.uk
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