We know that they’re important, but what actually is an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC)? An EPC gives you information on how energy efficient a building is. They give a rating from A (very efficient) to G (inefficient). EPCs give you an idea of how much it’ll cost to keep your property warm and light but also tells you what your carbon dioxide emissions are likely to be.
Why is having an EPC important?
There are many reasons why having a valid EPC is important. Firstly, they provide valuable information to the property owner and inhabitants, allowing you to make informed decisions on how best to heat the property, for example. An EPC helps you identify energy efficiency improvements that you could make which will make your property better to live in.
Having an EPC is also vital if you’re looking to sell or rent out your property. Potential buyers and tenants will want all the information they can on the property and a valid EPC will be part of that. To market your property effectively, it’s important you have a valid EPC produced by an approved domestic energy assessor. This also applies to people looking to buy or rent a property.
How long is an EPC valid?
An EPC is valid for 10 years from the date it was issued.
What does an EPC include?
All EPCs contain basic information about the energy efficiency of your home. However, not all of them look the same as some older EPCs, for example, present the information differently from more modern versions. Here’s what you can expect to find when looking at your EPC:
Energy Efficiency Rating
This is what most people first look for on an EPC. It gives you an energy efficiency rating from A-G and includes a specific number relating to the property’s energy efficiency so you can see exactly where it falls within the rating it received. It also provides a ‘potential’ rating, showing how efficient the property could be if you carried out all of the suggested improvements.
Current Energy Costs
This section gives you an approximation of how much your current energy bills would be, splitting this into lighting, heating and hot water. As with the energy efficiency rating, it also gives you the potential energy costs if you were to make the changes suggested in the certificate.
Actions
Here you’ll find the suggested improvements you can make to your property to make it more energy efficient. It also provides a rough estimate of how much each improvement will save you in energy costs.
Performance
In this part of the EPC, each part of your house will receive an individual energy rating from one to five stars. This section indicates how energy efficient each part of your house is in its current state. You can use this section to compare it with other properties if you’re looking to buy, for example.
