They could be blocked from renting out properties or face heavy fines
Nearly half, or 47%, of landlords thought that the regulations around energy performance certificate (EPC) ratings were merely guidance and not the law, research undertaken by Mortgage Advice Bureau has found.
While a vast majority of landlords (86%) know what their property’s EPC rating is, only 35% knew that meeting the minimum ‘C’ rating was the law, and nearly a fifth, or 18%, were not aware of the changes at all.
This means that a significant number of landlords are in danger of being blocked from renting out properties they own and may even face hefty fines as they were not aware that the government requires that they retrofit and upgrade their rental properties to at least an EPC rating of ‘C’.
Following a consultation in 2021, the government issued a deadline of 2025 for newly rented properties and 2028 for all other properties to get to a minimum EPC rating of ‘C’.
Of the ones who did know they needed to make changes – whether it was law or guidance, 34% had heard about this via the government, while 32% had only heard about the EPC rules through the media, and 30% through their friends and family. Over one in five, or 22%, were made aware of the changes needed to be made from their tenants themselves.
Mortgage Advice Bureau also reported that the main concerns of landlords around upgrading their properties by the 2028 deadline are the costs of making all the necessary upgrades (27%), and finding a trusted tradesperson (27%). A further 23% were worried about the disruption it may cause tenants when they make the upgrades, as well as the time it may take (also 23%).
The research also revealed that those who only let one property are more unaware of the changes than those who have two or more properties. Over a quarter (28%) of landlords with a single property did not know about the upgrades that needed to be made, compared to landlords with over six properties, who were all aware of the changes.
“Landlords were facing a race against time to retrofit their properties and meet incoming EPC legislation,” Ben Thompson (pictured), deputy chief executive at Mortgage Advice Bureau, said. “As well as cost-of-living pressures and higher interest rates working against landlords meeting the initial 2025 deadline, they were also clearly in the dark about the changes that they needed to make.
“While delaying the cut-off date before the law comes into place is clearly a sensible move, unless there is clear help unveiled to support with the cost of retrofitting, they could find themselves up against the deadline again in a few years’ time.”
Thompson also pointed out that an extension would also mean that tenants will continue to struggle with higher energy bills, so it’s vital that the deadlines are not seen to be easily moved.
“Sooner or later, the inconvenient truth is that the retrofitting of properties that are sub-‘C’, whether rented or owner-occupied, will most definitely need to be done,” he stressed.
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