Selling a home

Energy Performance Certificates

An Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) tells you how energy efficient a property is. You must have an EPC when you’re:

You must order an EPC for potential buyers and tenants before you market your property to sell or rent.

In Scotland, you must display the EPC somewhere in the property, for example in the meter cupboard or next to the boiler.

An EPC contains:

An EPC gives a property an energy efficiency rating from A (best) to G (worst) and is valid for 10 years.

If your property does not have an EPC or it has expired, you’ll need a new one before you get your property ready to sell or rent.

You’ll need to pay for an EPC from an accredited assessor. Your estate agent may be able to help arrange this.

You can be fined if you do not get an EPC when you need one.

The person selling the house, the landlord or the letting agent must show you the EPC if you’re buying or renting.

You do not need an EPC for:

temporary buildings that will be used for less than 2 years
stand-alone buildings with total useful floor space of less than 50 square metres
industrial sites, workshops and non-residential agricultural buildings that do not use a lot of energy
some buildings that are due to be demolished
holiday accommodation that’s rented out for less than 4 months a year or is let under a licence to occupy
listed buildings - you should get advice from your local authority conservation officer if the work would alter the building’s character
residential buildings intended to be used less than 4 months a year
places of worship

Contact the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) if you need help with finding an EPC or accredited assessor.