As of Friday 21st May 2010, home sellers will no longer require a Home Information Pack (HIP). However, The Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) will still be required and Harveys are able to provide this service to our clients.

What is an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC)?

An EPC will tell buyers and sellers about a home’s energy efficiency, using A to G ratings like those used on appliances such as washing machines and refrigerators. The certificate will also specifically show, for each individual property, various improvements that could be made to cut fuel bills and carbon emissions, the costs of doing this and how quickly these will be recouped through reduced spending on energy.

The EPC will be prepared by a Domestic Energy Assessor who has been trained and is licensed via the Government Certification Scheme.

New build properties

For newly built homes, though these are subject to their own regulations and, in most cases, the EPC will be replaced by a Predicted Energy Assessment (PEA) produced from the design plans.

Homes built after the introduction of the recent Building Regulations (Regulation 17c Part L 2006) are currently unable to have an EPC/PEA produced as the software is under development but the requirement will be phased in. It is envisaged that all new homes will be legally obliged to have had a SAP based EPC produced as part of the Building Regulations sign off process.