RESIDENTIALsales
Mike Ockenden, Director
General, Association of Home Information Pack Providers (AHIPP) discusses HIPs and EPCs with the political parties
C
onservative Home, a Tory website, has announced some interesting research – a poll of 250 Tory candidates with the most winnable
seats were asked about their most important personal priorities in the next election. Surprisingly, out of the 19 suggested issues, reducing Britain’s carbon footprint came right at the bottom! The candidates were given a list of policy priorities and asked to rate them between 1 and 5, 1 meaning the goal wasn’t important, 5 being very important. Only 8 of 141 candidates felt that reducing Britain’s carbon footprint deserved a 5. These results fly in the face of efforts to
combat climate change through reduced carbon emissions. Figures revealed by the National Energy Services (NES) showed that if EPC recommendations were followed, household fuel bills could be reduced by £182 a year and on average, each home’s CO2 emissions would be reduced by 1.2 tonnes. This equates to a cut in carbon emissions of 22 per cent, compared with the Government target for housing is to reduce the level of 2008 emissions by 29 per cent by 2020. With one million homes changing hands in a typical year, the potential is there to reduce total annual carbon emissions by 1.36 million tonnes and energy costs by £200 million in a single year. The NES report is the latest in a string
of reports indicating how important it is to have mandatory delivery of the EPC. In Northern Ireland, where there are no HIPs, there is a 45 per cent non-compliance rate in obtaining EPCs on the sale of homes. This starkly demonstrates that when there is no requirement to have a HIP consumers often do not see their EPC and are thus denied the opportunity to act upon the advice to reduce the carbon emissions
36 MARCH 2010 PROPERTYdrum
EPC. The Minister’s response was not very forthcoming, especially on the level of non compliance within the commercial and domestic sectors. That said, he did state the department is working with RICS on a project to explore the extent to which energy performance is reflected in the value of a property and the resulting effect on the market price of homes. Either way the answer will be
from their property. Grant Shapps doesn’t seem capable of understanding, despite his backing of the EPC and promotion of the Tory’s ‘Green Deal’, that continued pursuit of a policy to scrap HIPs means he will be responsible for impeding domestic carbon emissions reductions. Without the legal requirement for a HIP, the carbon emission reductions that EPCs bring are lost, as the NES report shows. It is reassuring that the Lib Dems have
shown interest in the benefits delivered by EPCs. Last month Sarah Teather, the Housing Spokesperson, asked a number of pertinent parliamentary questions of John Healey, the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government. In particular, she asked what his Department’s most recent estimate is of the effect on the sale prices of homes to which energy efficiency improvements have been made following the requirement to produce an
interesting, although consumer attitudes as demonstrated in a number of reports, including the latest from NES, indicate that EPCs do have a positive impact on property values. It is also worth bearing in mind the Recast Energy Performance of Buildings Directive, which will soon become European law, requires the inclusion of EPC details in all property particulars. I trust the UK will lead the way with implementing the directive and that other Member States will soon follow. The requirement to provide information at the time of listing is not going to disappear, even if the Tories decide to pursue their policy of scrapping HIPs. We met Grant Shapps to discuss the
possibilities and the reforms he wishes to introduce. As there have been a number of misrepresentations regarding HIPs and EPCs, we want to ensure he has the real facts, by presenting the other side of the story. Should his party win power, we will continue meeting with him to create a genuinely sustainable alternative to HIPs that will not require the complete unravelling of the existing legislation and industry infrastructure, but will rather be built on enabling the British public to have a faster and more efficient home buying and selling process.
How would you like to see HIPs develop?
www.propertydrum.com/articles/hipsmar
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