ePolitix.com Stakeholders comment on the Better Regulation Commission's call for a rethink on plans for 'energy performance certificates'.

The BRC called on the government to delay the introduction of energy performance certificates until it has had the opportunity to reconsider its proposals in the light of the issues the Commission has raised.

Stakeholder Response: Council of Mortgage Lenders

To comment to CML click here

The CML said: "As early as last October the Council of Mortgage Lenders voiced its concern that the government’s proposals ‘gold plate’ the introduction of energy performance certificates (EPCs) by using the home information pack (HIP) approach. 

"We are pleased that the Better Regulation Commission has reached the same conclusion.

"In our response to the government's latest consultation on home HIPs, we have called for the implementation of the pack to be postponed until full evidence from research and area trials is available, on which an informed decision about the likely effectiveness of HIPs can be based.

"Overall, we believe the government has been slow to recognise the problems with local authority searches (despite repeated representations on this issue over a period of some years).

"These problems are not new and should have been resolved well before HIPs were introduced.

"We also believe that the HIPs timetable increasingly lacks credibility, with proposals for change still being made less than four months before full implementation, and without proper testing. In particular, we are concerned that:

• the baseline research published in January does not provide sufficient evidence to justify the current proposals for HIPs, and regulatory impact assessments will not be published until late March, far too late for proper scrutiny before implementation on 1 June;

• the HIP approach "gold-plates" the requirements of the European Directive for the delivery of EPCs;

• there may not be enough energy assessors on 1 June, which will cause market disruption if people cannot market their properties without an EPC; and 

• take-up of the home condition report in the area trials has been only 60% so far, even with the government funding the cost, leaving serious questions about their likely level of take-up when consumers have to foot the bill for them.

"We remain interested in exploring the possibilities for 'green' mortgages. However, at present there is no standard definition of a green mortgage.

"Other incentives for people to make energy efficiency improvements - such as council tax rebates for energy-saving measures, and readily available EPCs at all points during home-ownership - are much more likely to encourage consumers to take positive energy-saving action."

Stakeholder Response: NHBC

To comment to NHBC click here

The NHBC said: "NHBC strongly supports energy performance certificates (EPCs) as part of the Home Information Pack. 

"NHBC has been providing comprehensive assessments of the energy usage of new homes, including estimated running costs and carbon dioxide emissions, through our National Home Energy Rating scheme for a number of years.

"However, NHBC believes that it is going to be a challenge to get the requisite number of inspectors in place in order to ensure that the EPCs can be issued from June 1st. 

"We want to ensure that the introduction of the new system goes as smoothly as possible, this will be important to maintaining consumer confidence in the UK housing market. 

"The Government should consider the option, which the Irish Government has taken, to phase the introduction of EPCs over a longer period, starting with new homes."