Are you on the lookout for the best source of research regarding Commercial EPC Assessors, but are not sure where to begin? We have done all the deliberating for you with our round-up of Commercial EPC Assessors fundamentals.
If
you’re considering making the switch from fossil fuel technology to
more efficient, cleaner, renewable energy technology, having a valid EPC
is a must. An EPC is a legal requirement for any property being sold,
let or constructed in England and Wales and is valid for 10 years. The
Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) is a government scheme that encourages
homeowners (and businesses) to adopt cleaner renewable heating
technology. Payments are made quarterly for 7 years after installation.
We’ve put together a handy guide to help you learn more about the RHI.
An EPC rates the energy efficiency of the building by applying zoning
methods to calculate the energy efficiency of the building and
estimating how much carbon dioxide escapes into the atmosphere. The EPC
does not show what the actual energy use of the building is or has been.
An EPC can also be used as a great bargaining chip. If you’re
considering buying a property with a low EPC rating, this could help you
negotiate the house price down. Alternatively, you might also be able
to haggle a lower rent. Put simply, whenever a property is built, sold,
or let you will need an EPC. You must have it before your property is
listed and its rating must be included on any advertising, whether
selling or letting. The full EPC though does not have to be shown. Just
the rating. A, B, C and so on. It will be valid for 10 years but in that
time may need be changed if improvements are made to the property. The
house or flat could be sold multiple times but if the EPC is still
valid, it will not need a new one. For privately rented non-domestic
properties, from 1st. April 2018, Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards
(MEES) regulations will affect all commercial landlords and property
owners. The regulations state that any property having a new lease
granted, or an existing lease renewed, must achieve an EPC rating of E
or above. From April 2023, the regulations will apply to ALL leases,
whether up for renewal or current.
The
SBEM (Simplified Building Energy Model) is a method and calculation
used to demonstrate and prove the energy performance of both new and
existing non-domestic and commercial buildings. Your heating system can
have a big impact on your property’s energy efficiency. And if your
boiler is inefficient, it could be having a major effect on your EPC
rating. Boilers don’t come cheap, but in the long term, a modern, energy
efficient boiler will pay for itself through reduced heating bills.
Local weights and measures authorities (usually through their trading
standards officers) are responsible for enforcing the regulations that
require an EPC to be made available on the sale or rent of a building.
Failure to provide an EPC when required means you may be liable to a
civil penalty charge notice. Trading standards officers may act on
complaints or undertake investigations. Enforcement action may still be
taken up to six months after any failure has been corrected. As a
landlord, you’re responsible for making sure your rental property’s EPC
rating doesn’t fall below ‘E’ unless you registered an appropriate
exemption. Failure to comply with the Compliance Notice could cost you a
Publication Penalty and a fine of up to £2,000. Meanwhile, you’re
required to present an SAP EPC if your property is newly built, recently
converted or had a recent increase in the number of dwellings.
Professional assistance in relation to
epc commercial property can make or break a commercial building project.
Useful Information About A PropertyFor
now, government estimates show that around 18% of commercial properties
are in the EPC ‘F’ and ‘G’ rating brackets, with 80% to 90% of London’s
stock currently rated ‘C’ or below, leaving it open to devaluation by
institutional investors in the future. Energy efficiency is the use of
less energy in a building to perform the same operation as buildings
that consume energy inefficiently. It should be considered during the
design stage, selection of construction materials, construction process,
and operation of the building. When a Non-Domestic Energy Assessor
(NDEA) inspects a property, they look at the energy efficiency of
different aspects of the building in relation to how they affect the
entire building’s energy efficiency rating. They look at the size of the
property, the age, type and the materials used to build it along with
the lighting, ventilation, wall and loft insulation, windows and
heating/air conditioning system. The inspection allows them to make
recommendations in each of these areas to improve the building’s rating.
An EPC isn’t optional. They’re a legal requirement when constructing,
selling or renting out a building. You must order one before you market
your property to sell or rent, and then provide it free of charge to a
prospective buyer or tenant. From April 2016, private residential
landlords will be unable to refuse a tenant’s reasonable request to make
improvements to a property to increase its energy efficiency, where a
finance package such as the Green Deal is available. Furthermore, from
April 2018, renting out either residential or commercial premises with
an EPC rating of F or G, will become illegal. Advising on matters such
as
commercial epc will provide benefits in the long run.
Homeowners
have been able to recuperate their investment in renewable technology
by benefiting from the UK government schemes, such as the Feed-in
Tariff. This is linked with the Energy Efficiency Rating of the EPC, as
homeowners have had to show that their property achieves a rating of D
or above. An EPC costs approximately £35 but it can be much higher. The
factors that define the change in price can be, but are not limited to,
the type of property, the number of bedrooms, and the area you live in.
However, if you are a landlord, should you receive your EPC and find it
is graded at E or below you will be legally required to make
improvements. These improvements are capped at £3500 and if you find
that after spending that amount, you still can’t improve the property to
a sufficient grading, you may be able to apply for an exemption.
Failure to bring the property to the required standard can lead to a
£4000 fine if you aren’t eligible for an exemption. If you’re looking to
sell your home, then you’ll need an EPC assessment completed to go
alongside your listing to show potential buyers how energy efficient the
home is. If you’re a landlord, it’s a legal requirement to have an
up-to-date Energy Performance Certificate and recent rules mean that the
property has to meet Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES) of an E
rating or above in order to comply with regulations. Newer leases are
including EPC clauses that typically restrict tenants from obtaining new
EPCs or doing works that adversely affect the EPC. This is clearly a
recognition of how powerful EPCs have now become. Yet, there are many
existing leases that do not mention EPCs and tenants could use EPCs and
MEES to their advantage. If you're not happy with your EPC and think the
information in it is wrong, you must contact the person who produced
the EPC. Their contact details will be on the recommendations report.
You must try to resolve the issue with the assessor first. They will
explain why they came to the conclusion they did. Research around
non domestic epc register remains patchy at times.
How Do I Get A New Epc Certificate?It
is the owner or landlord who is responsible for providing an EPC to any
prospective buyer or tenant. This should be done no later than the day
on which a viewing is carried out, or written information is provided
about the premises. At the very latest, an EPC must be provided when a
contract to sell or let premises is arranged - see Energy Performance
Certificates for the sale of business premises[1]. An EPC has been
required for the construction, sale or letting of property, since 2008,
but until recently it was just simply a tick box exercise as part of the
transaction. However, now EPC and MEES have wider implications for
commercial landlords and tenants than just energy efficiency, and not
all EPCs are created equally (poor data in, low EPC out). There is a lot
of confusion about how the MEES regulations apply to listed buildings.
The fact that a property is listed does not automatically exempt the
property from the requirement to satisfy MEES, or have an EPC
certificate. However, it may be that an exemption is available because
the carrying out of energy efficiency improvement works would adversely
impact the heritage value of the property, not be cost-effective, or be
refused listed building consent. An EPC has been a legal requirement
since 2008 for any property, whether commercial or domestic, that is to
be sold or let. Since April 2012, legislation has been set in place that
makes it illegal to also market a property without a valid EPC and the
responsibility is now jointly shared with Landlord/Property owner and
Estate or Letting Agent to ensure the property has a valid EPC before
being put up for market. While an EPC is a legal requirement there are
many reasons why it is essential to have one from reducing you carbon
footprint to saving money on your energy bills. If you're buying new
properties to rent or refurbishing existing rental properties, we
encourage you to upgrade the properties' energy efficiency now. By
raising each property to an EPC rating of C, you'll provide your tenants
with warmer and more comfortable homes, reducing fuel consumption and
helping to tackle the climate emergency. A service such as a
mees regulations is an invaluable asset in the heady world of business.
A
DEC will tell you and the public about the actual energy which was
consumed by the building and give it an energy rating of between A and G
(with A being the most energy efficient). The assessor will look at
energy bills for the building and compare them to a benchmark set by a
building which is similar in type. The penalty for failing to have an
EPC in place while a building is being marketed is 12.5% of the Rateable
Value, subject to a minimum of £500 and a maximum of £5,000, enforced
by local Trading Standards officers. The penalty is repeated every 28
days if an EPC is still not prepared. EPCs can only be produced by a
qualified Domestic Energy Assessor (DEA). The DEA must be a member of an
accreditation scheme approved by the Government. It is estimated that
the cost of an EPC will be around £50. Visit www.epcchoice.com to order
your EPC. You can get domestic EPCs, commercial EPCs or display energy
certificates, depending on the type of property being assessed. In
England and Wales, EPCs were introduced in August 2007 to make sure
prospective home buyers and sellers were aware of the energy efficiency
of their properties. They evaluate the characteristics of a building to
determine whether or not it is efficient in its energy usage. An EPC is
not a safety measure of a building, but instead, an assessment of its
energy efficiency. MEES, or Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards, are
minimum requirements for EPC ratings enforced by the government. These
regulations are being extended in April 2023. From April 2023, UK
landlords will not be able to grant or renew a policy for a tenant if
their commercial property has an EPC (Energy Performance Certificate)
rating of F or lower. Fines for continuing to let a property from this
date will amount to a minimum of £5,000, up to £150,000. There are
multiple approaches to facilitating a
mees in the workplace.
Domestic And Non-Domestice PropertiesThe
penalty for failing to make an EPC available to any prospective buyer
or tenant when selling or letting non-dwellings is fixed, in most cases,
at 12.5% of the rateable value of the building, subject to a minimum
penalty of £500 and a maximum of £5,000. There is a default penalty of
£750 where the formula cannot be applied. A formula is used as the costs
of producing an EPC for nondwellings are expected to vary according to
the size, complexity and use of the building. The EPC will still be
required. Whether your home requires cavity wall insulation or solid
wall insulation, making this change can improve your EPC rating. You
might qualify for assistance with the cost of the project Also, nothing
will have such a significant impact on your energy bills as an
energy-efficient boiler. The cost of replacing your boiler, or entire
heating system, might be high in the short term, but the impact will be
considerable. Holding an EPC is a legal requirement under the Energy
Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD). Without it your building
cannot be signed off, sold or let. You can also be fined up to £5,000.
For businesses there are 3 levels of non-domestic Energy Performance
Certificate which are Level 3, Level 4 and Level 5 EPCs. The difference
between them is to do with the complexity of the building and the fixed
services with Level 5 being the most complex and Level 3 the least
complex. Stumble upon additional information about Commercial EPC
Assessors at this
UK Government Website page.
Related Articles:
Supplementary Insight On Non-Domestic Energy Performance AssessorsExtra Insight On Fully Accredited Energy AssessorsMore Background Information About Professionally Qualified Domestic Energy ContractorsAdditional Insight On Accredited Commercial Energy AssessorsFurther Insight About Non-Domestic Energy Performance Certificate ContractorsSupplementary Insight With Regard To Qualified Domestic Energy ContractorsAdditional Findings With Regard To Accredited Commercial Energy Assessors