Energy Performance Certificates – have your say

Over the summer, the Government has issued a “Call for Evidence” in relation to energy performance certificates ("EPC"s):

The deadline for responding is 19 October 2018.

The Call for Evidence invites respondents to answer a number of specific questions about the ways in which the EPC regime currently functions and how it might be improved. It also seeks comment on practical and technical matters such as the quality of EPCs and the operation of the open register.

Developers, owners and occupiers of real estate should welcome this opportunity to provide feedback to the Government. In particular, landlords will be hoping that this exercise helps to clarify some of the uncertainties around how the EPC regulations interact with the Minimum Energy Efficiency Standard ("MEES") regulations.

Some examples of concerns which could usefully be addressed by Government include:

• EPCs and lease renewals (where Government guidance is currently ambiguous).
• How EPCs and MEES operate where a developer is leasing a shell and core building and the tenant is responsible for the fit-out.
• Whether it would make sense for MEES and EPCs to fall under the remit of the same Government department.
• The circumstances in which listed buildings require EPCs.
• The difficulties with identifying property addresses on the EPC Register and inconsistent property naming conventions on the certificates themselves.

CMS will be responding to the Call for Evidence. However, we are also urging our real estate clients to submit their own responses because we believe that the greater the number of credible responses the Government receives, the greater the prospects for reform.