The term EPC stands for Energy Performance Certificate and is part of the Home Information Pack (HIP), which current UK legislation requires all house sellers to provide to prospective buyers.
This means that by law, you are not permitted to sell your home out without having an EPC certificate.
Any landlord wishing to rent out a property will have to provide an EPC to the prospective tenants the first time they let a home after 1st Oct ’08.
The EPC is, however, only required for properties that are self contained, and the certificate is valid for a period of 10years. This means that an EPC is not required when renting a room to a tenant.
The EPC section of the Home Information Pack is designed to provide an energy rating for the house. Usually, the EPC provides energy efficiency information in graph form, and covers various points, from heating to lighting.
EPC Rating System
The rating system uses letters to denote the overall efficiency of the home, with an ‘A’ rating being the most efficient, and a ‘G’ the least.
The vast majority of homes in the UK fall under the D to E class.
Another purpose of the EPC is to point out areas of possible energy efficiency improvement, in order to reduce ‘carbon footprints’ and reduce energy costs.
Most individual house sellers, however, see the EPC and HIP as simply another formality involved when selling their home.
If you are confused by the above information, or wish to know more, try getting in touch with the experts. www.uk-epc.co.uk are specialists in providing energy advise to everyone from large corporations and local authorities, down to individuals struggling to come to terms with the implications of the new home Information Pack legislation.
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