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Knowing the variability between Commercial Energy Performance Certificate Assessors can help everyone make the correct decision when it comes to the crunch. A good EPC rating is anything above a B. The best energy performance rating is ‘A’, which means a property has an efficiency score of between 92-100. The closer you can get to this score, the better. However, most properties aren’t this energy efficient. The average rating for a property in the UK is ‘D’ - meaning they have an energy rating between 55-68. The EPC has a role to play in the energy transition in view of the current climate situation. The UK has been at the center of global action to tackle climate change and has led the way by decarbonizing its economy. This document is in line with the Energy-Climate law initiated in 2019 by the UK to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2050. It is the responsibility of the seller or landlord offering the accommodation for sale or let to make an EPC available for their building. A lease assignment would be considered to be a sale and the assignor should provide an EPC. The legal view is that it is the tenant, and not the landlord, who is selling their interest in the lease. EPCs show the energy performance of a building on an alphabetical scale of A to G. When a building is given a rating of “A”, it means that such building is highly efficient while buildings with a rating of “G” have very low energy efficiency and are not safe for habitation until such building’s energy efficiency is improved. The legal responsibility to have an EPC assessment lies with the organisation that has placed the building on the market, such as the landlord, the company seeking an assignment, or subtenant. The marketing agent also has a legal responsibility to have EPCs in place for the buildings they are advertising. A property cannot be listed on the market until a Commercial EPC is booked in. Once you have proof of our lead assessor booking an EPC your property can be listed. No need to wait until the assessment has been undertaken. Depending on the value of the building any Commercial property owner can be fined between £200 to £5000 per property if they do not have a valid Commercial EPC Certificate. As of the 1st April 2012, you’ll also need an Energy Performance Certificate of band D or higher if you want to have solar panels installed in your home and receive the standard rate from the Feed-in Tariff. If your property is below band D when you first apply for the Feed-in Tariff you will receive a lower rate, which will remain the case even if you improve your home’s energy performance at a later date. Energy efficient buildings are still high-performing buildings capable of a lot; they simply use different building methods, materials, and other resources to create a more energy-efficient, and therefore, environmentally friendly structure. You might find yourself asking 'what is an EPC?' for a number of reasons, as it's required whether you're building, buying, selling or renting a house. An Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) outlines a property's energy use and potential energy costs, as well as how improvements can be made. If you are considering selling your property then improving the energy rating will also likely improve the capital value. In line with an increase in value of the property, you may be able to raise the monthly rent of the property. You will make slightly more in rental income each month, and your tenant will pay less overall each month – their electricity and heating bills won’t be as high. It’s a win-win! A team of Energy Assessors and Chartered Surveyors are uniquely placed to give advice on non domestic epc register and provide a complete energy consultancy service. Enhance Your Quality Of Life An EPC assesssment visit itself involves gathering information about various aspects of the property. This includes the boiler, the insulation, the windows, the central heating system, any hot water tanks. The assessor will make a rudimentary floorplan and take pictures as they work, in order to provide the evidence necessary to lodge the certificate. There are 3 levels of EPC classification for non domestic properties. Level 3: Any commercial premises with a heating system under 100KW and cooling system under 12kw. Level 4: Buildings with heating systems over 100kw and cooling over 12kw. Level 5: Large commercial buildings with very complex HVAC systems.The majority of commercial premises will fall into the level 3 category. Any building that’s newly built, being put up for sale, or being advertised for rent will need an EPC if it uses any kind of heating or air-conditioning. Energy Performance Certificates aren’t just essential for private homes. They apply to most buildings – so you’ll also need a commercial Energy Performance Certificate if you’re building, letting, or selling business premises. Properties can only be rented if they have an energy rating of A, B, C, D or E. If you’re currently renting and your property has a higher EPC rating, you might be paying more than you need to in energy bills. If your EPC is higher than it should be, you could miss out on Government energy grants that are only available for properties with an EPC rating of D, E, F or G. The RdSAP is a non-intrusive way to gauge the energy efficiency of a home, in a similar way that a building surveyor is not allowed to disturb the fabric of a home or cause any damage without the express permission of the owner. One might worry that a RdSAP EPC assessment is not as accurate as one conducted using SAP, however, this is not the case. Surveys of houses which have had both SAP and RdSAP assessments have found that each method produces very similar results. You may be asking yourself how does a epc commercial property fit into all of this? Private landlords won’t have to make improvements if they have registered the property as exempt (they will also have to reapply for the exemption every five years). You can check if your home is exempt via the Government website. An Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) is an energy efficiency rating for your property, and is needed by law on all properties being rented or marketed for sale. These are both beneficial in ensuring that homes are meeting efficiency targets, as well as allowing home owners to identify areas of their home where they may be able to improve efficiency, save on energy bills and increase the overall comfort of their living conditions. Both new and existing tenants should understand their property's EPC rating. Where it is below the new minimum thresholds, tenants should review their leases to understand if costs can be passed on. This will allow them to budget accordingly and engage early with landlords as to what the proposed plans are to achieve the new minimum standards. MEES, or Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards, are minimum requirements for EPC ratings put in place by the government. A large proportion of greenhouse gases come from energy use in large commercial buildings, along with domestic property heating, and MEES is implemented to reduce this. Whether you are selling a property or deciding to let out your current home, having an Energy Performance Certificate is a vital part to ensuring you are fully compliant. It is a legal document and every property is required to have one before selling or letting. There are multiple approaches to facilitating a mees in the workplace. Calculation Of Commercial EPCs From 1 April 2023, a Landlord will not lawfully be allowed to continue any lease over a Property which does not hold a valid EPC rating. Therefore, landlords should start looking to improve the EPC rating of a property where this is necessary. The good news for tenants is that compliance with EPC regulations is ultimately the Landlord’s responsibility. The EPC is a rating scheme that summarizes the energy efficiency of a building (heating, hot water, etc.) and the greenhouse gas emissions it produces. The energy performance certificate is a preventive measure for the future buyer or tenant. It provides effective ways to improve your home energy and also gives information about the thermal comfort of the building. Following the assessment, the owner can anticipate renovations to improve the EPC and the value of the property. A low EPC can be a deal breaker for future buyers or tenants of the building. If you’re a commercial building owner or landlord, failure to comply with MEES can result in financial penalties and a potential loss in revenue. For many, in order to meet the new standards, offices and workplaces will require updates. The Standard Assessment Procedure ( SAP ) is the practice used by the UK Government to assess and compare the energy and environmental performance of dwellings for the building and construction industry. SAP Assessments are often carried out as part of Government set building regulations that require that a SAP calculation and a predicted EPC are carried out on new dwellings prior to the commencement of work. Depending on the size of your property the survey can take anything from 20 minutes to 60 minutes to complete. It's a fairly simple assessment and quick to execute as long as the assessor has access to all the areas they need. You should receive the report within a few working days. Do your research about commercial epc before entering into any long term transactions. Since 1 April 2020, landlords can no longer let or continue to let properties covered by the MEES Regulations if they have an EPC rating below E, unless they have a valid exemption in place. If you are currently planning to let a property with an EPC rating of F or G, you need to improve the property’s rating to E, or register an exemption, before you enter into a new tenancy. Too often, commercial buildings are not energy efficient enough to meet the new legal standard for minimum energy efficiency. Not only is this a waste of energy and money, but it can also have adverse consequences for the long-term health and safety of your property. The time taken to perform an energy assessment will vary according to the size and nature of the property. This is particularly true of commercial buildings where the wide variations in size etc renders any definition of 'average time' not very meaningful. However, it has been estimated that an average three bedroom semi-detached house would take just under two hours to complete. An EPC will look like the multi-coloured sticker that you see on new household appliances. It will include an energy efficiency rating, the estimated costs of running your home and a summary of energy performance related features. Your EPC will indicate how much it will cost to heat and power your building. The EPC also recommends the most suitable improvement measures for the given building, as well as whether you can potentially access funding to install these measures. For a domestic EPC, details are listed on potential savings that could be made should you improve the energy efficiency of your property. Can a mees regulations solve the problems that are inherent in this situation? Reducing Your Carbon Footprint Under the Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MMES) introduced in April 2018, all privately owned properties must have an EPC rating of at least “E” before they can be legally sold or let. There are a few exceptions — for example, listed buildings — but the legislation applies to the vast majority of residential and commercial buildings. Failure to comply will result in fines ranging from £5,000 to £150,000 (the higher rate is reserved for non-domestic property owners). Implementing energy efficient technology and practices in your home can reduce your annual utility bill by anywhere from 5 to 30%. Essentially, your savings are the result of reduced energy demand: building owners can either directly reduce electricity use by installing more efficient appliances, or prevent unnecessary energy waste lost as heat through improving insulation. Aside from going to market, an EPC is also needed when your property is viewed, when written information is requested, or the moment when contracts are being exchanged. In any case, it’s best to have this requirement taken care of ahead of time. Unearth supplementary details regarding Commercial Energy Performance Certificate Assessors in this UK Government Publications link. Related Articles: Additional Information About Accredited Energy Assessors Further Information With Regard To Fully Accredited Energy Assessors More Findings About Qualified Domestic Energy Assessors Supplementary Insight About Low Carbon Energy Assessors More Insight With Regard To Non-Domestic Energy Performance Certificate Contractors Extra Information On Domestic and Commercial EPC Assessors More Background Findings On Commercial EPC Assessors