EPCs and the law:
Amended Energy Performance of (Certificates and Inspections) Buildings Regulations 2010
Sellers and estate agents are no longer required to have or provide copies of HIPs with effect from 21st May 2010. In order to ensure that people selling their homes continue to make an Energy Performance Certificate available to prospective buyers, CLG have also laid before Parliament the Energy Performance of Buildings (Certificates and Inspections) (England and Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2010 which introduces a number of new legal requirements on both sellers and agents including:
• a new duty on the seller to secure that an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) has been 'commissioned' before marketing of the property commences where no such certificate is already available
• an EPC has been 'commissioned' when a Domestic Energy Assessor has been instructed to prepare the EPC and the EPC has either been paid for or has given a clear undertaking to pay for it
• a new duty on the person acting on behalf of the seller, e.g. estate agents, to be satisfied that an EPC has been commissioned before commencing marketing
• a new duty on both the seller and a person acting on their behalf to make reasonable efforts to secure an EPC within 28 days
• all of the new duties carry fixed penalty fines where the seller and agent fail in their duties conferred on them by the new regulations