A little-publicised Government Regulation came into effect on October 1st 2008 requiring almost all residential properties on the market for sale or rent to have an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) produced at a cost to the seller of between £50 and £150 + VAT.
Estate agents - already struggling to cope with the controversial and deeply unpopular Home Information Pack which contains an EPC - have only recently become aware that the Energy Performance of Buildings Regulations 2007 makes it mandatory for virtually every property offered for sale to have an EPC from 1st October, even if it was put on the market before the Home Information Pack legislation took effect.
Terry Lovett of Lovett Residential called the lack of clear direction from the Government a 'shambles'. Terry said:
“The whole Home Information Pack and Energy Performance Certificate implementation is unnecessary and has been appallingly badly handled by the Government. We now have our third Housing Minister in the past 12 months so I suppose we should not be surprised that this farce continues. The Government must scrap the flawed Home Information Pack without delay”.
