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Commercial Energy Performance Certificate Information

We provide Energy Certificates for every type of building!

Who needs a Commercial EPC?

Commercial Energy Performance Certificates (EPC) are a legal requirement to have in place when you sell or lease a non domestic property anywhere in the UK. Since the introduction of the Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES) legislation in April 2018 properties with an EPC rating of F or G cannot be let out until work has been carried out to improve the rating to at least an E. This has lead to many banks and financial institutions now refusing to carry out sale transactions on F and G rated properties. As well as providing Commercial EPCs, we can also provide tailored advice on the most cost effective and least disruptive ways to improve your rating to at least an E with our Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES) Consultation service

Properties exempt from needing an EPC

Some types of property are exempt from requiring a commercial EPC. If your property falls into one of the following categories then it may be exempt, however there are certain circumstances where an EPC may still be required:

  • Places of Worship
  • Temporary structures with a planned use less than 2 years
  • Properties with under 50m2 usable floor space which are detached (no wall touching a wall of another building)
  • Properties due for demolition with a demolition order in place

There is also technically an exemption for “Low energy demand properties e.g. agricultural barns" however as the government has never clarified what exactly classes as "low energy demand" this exemption is not one that can currently be applied.

What does the survey involve?

Commercial EPC surveys are more in depth than their domestic counterparts and generally involve making a 3d model of the building in specialist software. The assessor carrying out the survey must have a Non Domestic Energy Assessor (NDEA) qualification at a level appropriate for the type of building. On booking we will ask you questions about the building to ascertain what level it needs to be surveyed as.

During the survey the assessor will take measurements and photographs of the building, and make notes about the way the building is constructed, the space and water heating, ventilation and lighting. The survey is only of the building itself, so energy use from any industrial process etc. that may be undertaken inside is not taken into account.

Once the assessor has completed the site visit the data will be processed by either the assessor themselves, or for more complex buildings one of our dedicated energy calculation team. This involves making a 3d computer model of the building in specialist software such as Design Builder or IES. This model is then loaded with additional data about the construction and services and the EPC rating is calculated by the software.

The calculation itself follows a methodology called the Simplified Building Energy Model (SBEM). The assessor does not make any subjective judgements about the energy performance of the building, but rather collects data which is fed into the software that calculates the result. The resulting commercial EPC is accompanied by a recommendation report that makes suggestions as to how the buildings rating can be improved.

What do I get?

After the site visit it takes about 3 working days to produce your EPC. Once complete you will receive 2 documents, the EPC itself, which is valid for 10 years, and a recommendation report which gives advice on how to improve the rating of your property. The advice on the recommendation report is produced automatically by the software, and the assessor then removes recommendations that are not suitable for your property, and may add other recommendations that they judge to be more appropriate. The advice on the recommendation report is fairly generic. If you need more detailed advice specifically tailored to your property then we can also provide this as a separate product with our Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES) consultation service.

Who will carry out the survey?

Easy EPC have a highly skilled team of NDEA assessors, covering all of the UK. All our assessors are fully accredited and insured. We have the ability to carry out surveys on any type of building, from the smallest corner shop to large shopping centres and skyscraper office blocks. Our assessors on the road are supported by our highly experienced office based technical team, who also carry out the modelling and calculations for more complex buildings and projects. This ensures we are able to produce your Commercial EPCs quickly and accurately, working to the very highest standard.

Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES) legislation

Since April 2018 all commercial and domestic buildings have been required to have at least an E rating on their EPC before they may be leased to tenants. Because of this legislation many banks and financial institutions are now also insisting that properties for sale must achieve this rating before they will carry out financial transactions such as mortgages or ownership changes.

If your building gets an F or G on its EPC then we offer a consultation service to help guide you on the best ways to improve the rating. To do this we re-run the calculations multiple times, testing out a combination of different energy saving measures each time to establish the most cost effective and least disruptive ways of improving your buildings rating to an E or better.

Once we have completed the consultation and the work has been carried out, the building will need to be reassessed to produce the updated EPC. As long as this is carried out within 6 months of the date on the original EPC then this revisit can be provided for a reduced fee.

How do I book?

To get a quote for a commercial EPC for your property simply give us a call on 0800 170 1201, or alternatively fill in our contact form. The basic information we need to be able to provide you with a price for the survey is:

  • Postcode
  • What the buildings is used for
  • Approximate floor area
  • Number of floors

It is useful and may enable us to offer a cheaper quote if you are also able to provide the following information:

  • Floorplans
  • If no floor plans are available how many rooms the building is divided into (including WCs etc.)
  • The full address of the property

Once we have provided you with a quote, if you wish to go ahead and book we will also need invoicing details and contact details for whoever will be meeting us on site. We don't charge up-front, but will invoice you for the work on completion, and release the EPC and Recommendation Report to you upon receipt of payment. Our pricing includes the lodgement of the EPC on the government register, so the price we quote you is the total price you will pay.

After you have booked with us we will contact you or if you prefer an alternative site contact to arrange an appointment. Once we have visited site it takes us about 3 working days to produce the report, at which point we will contact you to let you know its ready and provide you with an invoice. On payment of the invoice we will email your EPC and Recommendation Report.

Our prices start from £99.95 + VAT, dependant on size and location of the property. Use this online booking tool to quickly get a quote for your SBEM.

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