Landlords should issue an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) to potential tenants every time they rent out a home, as it is a legal requirement and important for the landlord’s security. Tenants should check the EPC rating before renting a home and ask for the certificate if it is not offered. Landlords must disclose the energy rating of the property when advertising it and show the full EPC to potential tenants at viewings.

Landlords will need to invest up to £3,500 to improve properties rated below ‘E’ on the EPC. This can be done through measures such as installing cavity wall insulation, low energy lighting, increasing loft insulation, or changing to a more efficient heating system. The average cost to improve an F or G rated property to a band E is expected to be around £1,200.

If no action is taken to improve an F or G rated home, the Council can help under housing health and safety rules. The Council can order landlords to make energy-saving upgrades if tenants are living in dangerously cold homes.

The Energy Saving Trust advises landlords to aim for at least an E standard and not to be bound by the £3,500 limit on investment. The government is likely to increase the minimum standard incrementally from E to D, then C in the future. Tackling insulation and heating systems to get a cold property to a D or C standard now may allow landlords to access ECO funding to support upgrades. The Energy Saving Trust supports the government’s ambition to raise the standard to a ‘D’ rating by 2025 and a ‘C’ rating by 2030.