Landlords of privately rented properties must ensure their properties have an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating of E or above before granting a new tenancy to new or existing tenants.

• Check the government’s guidance for landlords about the minimum energy efficiency standard for domestic private rented property.

If your property does not have a rating of E or above, you must install improvements to bring it up to the minimum standard. Your EPC will recommend improvements.

The government updates the regulations and increases the minimum rating every few years.

Further information

• Minimum energy efficiency standards enforcement and fee policy [PDF, 0.2MB]

This document sets out how the Council will carry out its statutory responsibilities for ensuring minimum energy efficiency standards in the private rented sector, including enforcement of the regulations and fee setting in relation to financial penalties.

Spending limit and exemptions

If improving your property to the required standard will cost more than £3,500 you can register your property as exempt from the minimum standards. You must make all the improvements that you can for that amount before registering the exemption.

• You can include the cost of any energy efficiency improvements made to your property since 1 October 2017 in the limit of £3,500.
• If you can raise your property’s rating to E for less than £3,500 you do not have to spend more to raise it higher.

Third-party funding

There are various grants and incentive schemes available to increase the energy efficiency of your home or rented property.

• Home energy efficiency grants and incentives

If you secure third-party funding of more than £3,500 to pay for the improvements, the spending limit does not apply. You should spend all of it to raise your EPC rating as high as possible.

If the third-party funding is less than £3,500 and is not enough to raise the rating to E, the spending limit does apply. You must find another way to pay for the improvements.

• Find out about funding opportunities for landlords.

Webinar

We hosted a webinar for landlords and property managers in 2021, to explain the regulations and how to comply with them.