Labour has unveiled plans to overhaul both Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) and the MEES system that underpins them.
The Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES) regulations set minimum energy efficiency levels for private rented properties in the country, and the EPC is a certificate issued with a grade from A to F that proves landlords have met the standards. 
However, EPCs in particular have been heavily criticised by many letting agents as they can be confusing, hard to read and highly inaccurate.
The Department for Energy and Net Zero is due to launch a consultation on “proposed improvements to EPCS to make it more accurate and reliable”, while department officials at the industry meeting revealed that the MEES regulations would also be overhauled.
Plans to improve the EPC and MEES come following Ed Miliband's promise to landlords that by 2030 they will have to upgrade their properties to at least EPC Band C before they can be rented out.
To achieve this, significant financial support will be provided: landlords will be given a cash grant to cover the cost of renovating a single property, up to a maximum of £15,000-£30,000 depending on the type of renovation carried out, while portfolio landlords will have to cover half the costs of any subsequent properties, funded through the relaunched Warm Homes: Community Grants scheme.
Target postal code
However, the property must be within one of the government-issued “eligible postcodes”, which cover around half of the UK.
“This is an important step from the Labour Party and provides much-needed guidance on minimum energy efficiency standards for rented housing, which have been missing since they were scrapped by former Chancellor Rishi Sunak last September,” said Stuart Fairley, managing director of Elmhurst Energy, a leading provider of training and certification for energy efficiency professionals.
“The 2030 EPC C deadline and consultation on the Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES) regulations will provide much-needed clarity for many private rented sector landlords and provide a legal impetus for others.
“Properties with an EPC rating of D to G are where we need to focus urgently, as residents living in these homes are paying fuel costs that are almost three times higher than those living in homes with an EPC rating of C.”
