What are the new Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards and how will they impact me as a landlord?

Back in April 2018, the Government put into practice new measures to ensure that any new tenancies meet the minimum energy efficiency standard of an ‘E’ rating on their EPC assessment.  As of 1 April this year, all existing tenancies must also comply, or have a valid exemption registered.

There is a capped spending cost of £3,500 per property to make this upgrade.  If a property will cost more than this to upgrade, landlords can register an exemption. This could be either a ‘high cost exemption’ if the cost of installing the cheapest recommended improvement is higher, or the ‘all improvements made exemption’ if improvements up to the value of £3,500 have been made but the property remains rated F or G.

The relevant district council are the enforcement authority for properties in their area and can choose which function they wish to use to enforce the Regulations.  Where the district council considers that a landlord may be in breach of the rules or a landlord has been in breach of the rules at any time in the past 12 months, it may serve a Compliance Notice requiring the landlord to provide evidence to the enforcement authority.

For more information about the new rules and how they apply to you, visit https://www.gov.uk/guidance/domestic-private-rented-property-minimum-energy-efficiency-standard-landlord-guidance.

Have a look at our Landlord Loan page for ways we could help funding these essential works to your rental property or contact us for an informal chat.