Most people in the property industry are aware that the Conservatives has promised to scrap HIPs in the same manner in which Boris Johnson promised to scrap the bendy buses in London. Whilst we don’t doubt the commitment of either to their cause, some promises are sometimes more politically expedient than practically appropriate. With growing evidence from our agents that whilst HIPs are by no means perfect, (especially the first day marketing restriction) they have introduced some improvements into the selling process, and as such suspension risks throwing the baby out with the bathwater. In addition, the Conservatives’ promise to move the delivery of the Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) to the end of the conveyancing process would require a change in the law that demands that energy charts are displayed on property particulars. Whilst people may worry that some bendy buses catch fire and cause traffic congestion, like HIPs, getting rid of them may not be quite as simple as politicians would like.
Low Rating Energy Certificates – 1 and 1’s
When a property scores extremely poorly in an energy inspection, sometimes no potential improvements are shown on the EPC, so the potential rating remains the same as the actual rating. Whilst this appears illogical, the explanation is as follows :
The scale used on an EPC ranges from 1 to 100, the result of an inverse calculation of a figure called the “Energy Cost Factor” (ECF). If the ECF goes above 10, the EPC rating will be below zero, but this has to be shown as a 1 at a minimum. Only recommendations that improve the energy efficiency of a property by more than 1 point can be included on a report. Therefore, if the improvement still means the ECF is higher than 10, the EPC rating will remain as 1, and hence the recommendations cannot be included and no potential improvements can apparently be made to an inefficient property.
Energy Recommendations
Today. a major change concerning recommendations for improving the energy efficiency ratings of properties has been made. Previously, some energy assessors have been criticised for including recommendations such as the installation of solar panels and replacement double glazing on listed buildings, which of course, their status does not allow. In the past, more sensitive energy assessors removed such recommendations that they felt were inappropriate. However, from today, as part of the standardisation process, listed building status or a property in a conservation area are not sufficient grounds in their own right to suppress a recommendation.
The Challenge of Regulation
A search provider emailed us last week accusing our search supplier (one of their competitors) of not being legally compliant. Although the allegations proved to be totally unproven, they appeared to be based on an interpretation of a guidance note published by a regulatory body. We have recently come across two companies that subscribed to this same regulatory organisation - one company thought a second title was just a referred document and the other proved incapable of producing a search for an unregistered property. We remain extremely wary of any company that uses the blunt instrument of apparent regulation for competitive advantage.
