Elmhurst Energy, the energy performance measurement specialist, has welcomed the issuing of the 20 millionth Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) for homes and commercial buildings in England and Wales.

EPCs were first introduced in 2007 as part of the Home Information Pack, which was scrapped in 2010. However the Government kept the EPC as an effective way to measure the energy performance of buildings and it is a legal requirement to have a valid Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) when a building is sold, rented or constructed. 

Various Governments have consulted on the use of EPCs and in 2016, the Energy Efficiency (Private Rented Property) (England and Wales) Regulations 2015 established the Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES) in the residential and commercial private rented sector. In April 2018 it became a legal requirement for all privately owned properties (homes and commercial buildings) to have an EPC rating of at least a Band 'E' before they are let.

“We welcome the issuing of the 20 millionth EPC and look forward to working with the Government on the EPC’s future development and key role in measuring the energy performance of the UK’s homes and commercial buildings,” says Martyn Reed, Managing Director of Elmhurst Energy.

“We believe the EPC continues to offer significant value to home & building owners, landlords and their tenants and we intend to help extract that value in the future. We have already started that work by introducing insurance and risk solutions, enabling energy assessors to offer advice informed by the EPC.”