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DID YOU KNOW THAT YOU COULD BE FINED £200 FOR FAILING TO PROVIDE AN ENERGY PERFORMANCE CERTIFICATE
You may well have heard in the media that Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) are now required with effect after 30th June 2008 for all re-sale residential properties and for all rental properties after 30th December 2008.
Legislative Background
The Energy Performance of Buildings Directive 2002/91/EC (EPBD) aims to promote improved energy efficiency through the implementation of EPCs. All buildings will be required to have an EPC before they can be marketed for sale or rent. This means that every property brochure must either carry the certificate, or reproduce the colour graphs showing the energy assessment and Carbon Dioxide (Co2) impact.
What is an EPC?
An Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) is essentially a record of the current energy rating and potential energy saving of a property. The assessment must be carried out by a properly qualified and Registered Assessor known as a Domestic Energy Assessor and will detail the energy efficiency of the property. The EPC will consider elements of the property such as construction type, wall & loft insulation, heating fuel & boiler, hot water cylinder, floor area, average ceiling height, heat loss perimeter (HLP), windows, electricity meter (Dual or Single Rate).
Fees
Michael Hannath EPC & Property Management Ltd are now providing EPCs with a reduction in cost being offered to clients who instruct us to market their property through our residential sales and lettings department. We advise that all properties being listed should be assessed for an EPC at the same time as the listing as the property cannot be exposed to the market without the necessary graphs being included on the marketing particulars. Furthermore, having the EPC produced prior to marketing avoids the need to amend the brochure at a later date.
Penalties
It is important to note that any vendor who does not provide the relevant information from an EPC with the marketing particulars for their property may be liable to pay a fine of up to £200.00 for each breach. The legislation is being enforced in the early days by the Department of Finance & Personnel, but this function will pass to District Councils in the near future when an enforcement protocol has been finalised. (www.dfpni.gov.uk/epc) The duty to obtain an EPC rests either with the vendor, the prospective landlord or the person responsible for having construction work carried out - ‘the relevant person’. There is no duty placed on estate agents or the legal profession. However, in their professional capacity it is incumbent upon estate agents to advise their clients of the requirement. (www.dfpni.gov.uk/epc) A vendor could be fined, for instance, if an interested party viewed the brochure for their property and they were unable to produce the relevant EPC information at that time.
For further information please contact Chris Murtagh at our office in Bridge Street, Portadown on 028 3839 9911 or 07900 958 895.
