Government should incentivise EPC advice implementation, says green agent

The Government is being urged to incentivise vendors to implement Energy Performance Certificate recommendations to make them worth their expense.

Nigel Farren, director of eco-friendly estate agency HomesMatter, says: “Doing nothing is not an option. Sellers now outnumber buyers 15:1 and as homes increasingly take longer to sell and tenants demand lower energy bills, an urgent rethink is required on how to get sellers and landlords to act on EPCs.

“We want to work with Government and industry to solve this growing problem.”

Farren’s call follows the implementation of EPC legislation on October 1; it is now illegal for agents to sell a property without an EPC.

But he says that consumer education needs to be provided in addition to financial incentives as part of any support package.

“To date, over one million EPCs have been purchased by sellers but most have not been acted upon because sellers have not been given any advice by their estate agent or any financial incentives to install recommended energy savings measures, such as loft and cavity wall insulation.

"Buyers get the benefit of installed measures, so sellers need something if they are to act on EPCs.”

Farren believes that there has been a collective failure by Government and industry to help sellers, despite the European Commission’s Energy Performance in Buildings Directive stating that Member States should.

“Energy Savings Trust’s ‘Green Homes’ service is focused on homeowners who are not moving and, to date, local authorities have prioritised improving the energy efficiency of social housing although private homes are responsible for most carbon emissions.”

But Rob Letts, branch manager of York-based agency Coalters, says: “I don’t think they [financial incentives] would make vendors implement EPC recommendations because they’re moving to a new property.

“They will consider redecorating, but putting in loft insulation is the last thing on their mind when they about to move.”

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