Energy Performance Certificates (EPC) are a recently implemented measure that has been introduced by the Government to help with improving the energy efficiency of all buildings. They are generally considered a replacement for the HIP, which has been discontinued in the wake of the introduction of the EPC.
The law now requires you to have an EPC certificate if you are buying or selling a home and, as of October 2008, an EPC is required whenever a building is built, sold or rented.
The certificate itself provides a ranking, from ‘A’ to ‘G’ for the building. An ‘A’ ranking indicates that the building is very energy efficient, whereas ‘G’ means the least efficient of the buildings. Currently the average ranking for a building is a ‘D’.
An EPC will be produced by an accredited energy assessor and will be accompanied by a report which offers suggestions on how to make the building more energy efficient in the future.