EPC work cost £8k and property is still a D! Missold air source heat pump

thanks for this John Allies

'Two things to remember about installing the storage heaters, firstly you must be on dual tariff electricity or they are just considered as panel heaters and secondly the HHR heaters must be on the EPC heating database.'

Bearing in mind the current (and longer term view) that duel tariff's are already/will be practically extinct going forward, it lowers again the potential for small flat owners with only elec to really increase an EPC - EVEN if the specific brand HHR heaters are chosen.

Also as I understand it the meter also has to be changed to accommodate for a duel feed tariff - so if the tenant decides to change the meter (they can legally do without informing you) after you have put the branded HHR's in but before the EPC is conducted then you are back to square one.

With the electricity network decarbonising and the promised drop in the price of electricity, I really do hope that the government will scrap or entirely overhaul EPC assessment method as the current method actually goes against achieving net zero. Do energy assessors know of any planned changes in the near future?

Reply to the comment left by Jonathan Cocks at 01/06/2023 - 16:26In 2020 the government put out a consultation document called "improving the energy performance in privately rented homes". This was a prequel to the concept of increasing the minimum EPC rating to a C. I responded to this saying that I thought the rating was too high, that I thought April '25 was too soon and I felt that the rating should not be totally dependant on the cost of heating but also more involved with the environmental impact. Those that took part were told that they would get a reply, I'm still waiting.
I keep in touch with the leasing market by regular reading of property 118 and it does frustrate me that so many landlords do not understand how an EPC works and tend to blame the assessors when things go wrong.
I am in agreement with you that the process does need an overhaul and I think something must be done. Until then an EPC assessor can only work within the confines that he has.

Reply to the comment left by DSR at 01/06/2023 - 16:49
I am not sure that I agree with you about dual tariff meters becoming extinct. With the HHR storage heaters growing in popularity the demand is likely to increase. As you mention, you do need a new meter and some suppliers don't rush to give this, so possibly there might be an element of cost to the consumer. I don't know

Reply to the comment left by Emma L at 01/06/2023 - 16:53
The simple answer to that I'm afraid is no, Emma.
I frequently ask my professional body what are the latest guidelines and what is happening and the normal stock reply is, we'll let you know when we hear. My response to my customers is that everything is speculation so don't panic until you hear something concrete.

Reply to the comment left by John Allies at 01/06/2023 - 17:18
possibly only by those who actually turn the heating on. Many of my tenants will simply not turn the heating on at all. The unit price (even if duel rate reduced) will be over and above 'what it used to be' so many just cant afford it full stop.

Bear in mind credit and top up meters - they dont get the best deals anyway so duel meters may only be provided for those on billed accounts or pay DD's?

If there is a cost involved the companies wont wont to be paying out to change a meter to duel rate unless it makes financial sense for them, and if charged to change, then my tenants are not going to pay for that either.

As it stands the EPC is based on cost of average use. If an EPC were to be based live now in one of my properties using the actual consumption and actual cost, it would probably come out as an A rating!

This is the kind of campaign that Ben Beadle should be pushing for (NRLA) - getting the EPC rating system fit for purpose.

Reply to the comment left by John Allies at 01/06/2023 - 17:03
thank you again for your comments.
i have no intention of falling out with you over EPC as i think most people who have commented above from angle with EPC AS THE TOPIC, ARE IN AGREEMENT THAT it needs to be seriously overhauled/updated to look at the much longer picture.

I and i am sure most Landlords would agree more consistent clarity in this ever evolving energy subject, is required before we invest and potentially waste a huge amount of money to reach outdated targets.
how we do that from the Landlord side i guess is 1 problem
how assessors do that (and i note you are still awaiting a reply from years ago) i have no idea where you start.
i suppose an easy start for me is to ask NRLA (who have over 100,000 members) to either create a questionnaire for its members to complete and send to NO 10, or draft a simple letter we NRLA members can copy and send to our local MP's
there is going to be a general election between now and early 2025. this topic will effect all sides of the rental market so it might effect landlords and tenants and hence hopefully voters from ALL PARTIES

Thanks to John Allies, EPC Assessor, for your in-depth, behind the scenes insight into how an EPC currently operates. Extremely valuable information from the horse's mouth.

Reply to the comment left by John Gregson at 30/05/2023 - 09:45
Led lamps make minimal difference to an EPC rating and as they are standard nowadays and it is illegal for incandescent lamps to be sold it's pointless even mentioning them.