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Section 63 Action Plans

We provide Section 63 Action Plans for every type of building!

Who needs a Section 63 Action Plan?

Section 63 of the Scottish Climate Change Act of 2009 introduced the requirement for the assessment of energy performance and CO2 emissions of commercial properties, this was elaborated further in the “assessment of energy performance of non-domestic buildings regulations 2016 (scotland)"; this development means that property owners must create a plan to both improve the energy performance of, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions from their properties, this is known as a Section 63 Action Plan and must be completed by a competent assessor with the correct accreditations.

These legislations have been put in place to guarantee that Scotland’s built environment is prepared for all predicted environmental and climate based changes that the future may hold. Scottish government has also introduced some legislation into their climate change act known as the “2050 target" which states that Scottish Ministers have a responsibility to lower the net Scottish emissions account by 80% by the year 2050, Section 63 Action plans improve the chances that this will be achieved.

You must have Section 63 Action Plan in place for the sale or lease of your property if the Gross Internal Area (GIA) is 1000m2 or larger, this is in addition to having a valid commercial EPC to present for your potential buyers/tenants. If you do not have a valid commercial EPC and section 63 plan in place at the time of sale or rental you can be fined up to £1000 per property.

As well as being better for the environment and complying with legislation, improving your properties energy performance can save you money, otherwise spent on unnecessary energy output.

Properties exempt from needing a section 63 action plan

  • Buildings with a GIA of less than 1000m2
  • Buildings that are not intended to be standing for more than two years.
  • Prisons and young offender institutions
  • Properties that have met/exceeded the equivalent energy standards of the 2002 Scottish Building Regulations

What does the survey involve?

This survey requires a site visit from one of our accredited assessors, you have two options, “prescribed measures" which is a tick box list of recommendations provided to you in a standardised report, the other option is “alternative measures" meaning that our assessor will sit down with you on site and plan tailored improvement measures for your property.

The time on site depends heavily on the size and complexity of the building, as well as which measure options you choose. After the site visit our assessor will complete the action plan at the desk, which can take between 5-7 working days.

What do I get

After the site visit, it takes between 5-7 working days to produce your Section 63 Action Plan, once complete you will receive a professional document including all of the important information set out in a clear table advising what improvements should take place as well as emission/energy saving targets, other relevant information such as dates of assessments, sales/leases, plans, completion date goals are included.

When the improvements set out in the Section 63 Action Plan have been completed, a new EPC and Section 63 are created and lodged to the Scottish EPC register, to prove that the building owner has met the requirements of the legislation.

If you do not wish to carry out the improvements set out in the Section 63 Action Plan (which must be done within 42 months of lodgement) then you may be able to postpone by having an annual Display Energy Certificate lodged to the register and having them displayed clearly in the property. Please be aware that if you wish to defer the Action Plan improvements you must lodge your first DEC within 28 days of lodging the Action Plan.

Who will carry out the survey

Here at EasyEPC we have a trusted team of fully accredited and qualified assessors to carry out your Section 63 Action plan (along with your commercial EPC, and if you do not wish to make the improvements within 42 months, we can also complete your Display Energy Certificates!) All of our assessors are fully insured and have extensive experience working with a range of commercial properties, such as retail premises, industrial buildings, hotels, offices, etc.

What else may I need

Prior to creating a Section 63 Action Plan you will need a Commercial EPC, it is a legal requirement to have both a valid EPC and Section 63 Action Plan at the time of sale or rental of a property, on top of this, certain documents taken from the EPC are also necessary to complete the Section 63 Plan.

If you do not wish to complete the necessary improvements set out in the action plan, you will need to have a valid Display Energy Certificate (DEC) lodged and displayed clearly inside your property.

How do I book?

To get a quote for a Section 63 Action Plan 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:

  • Full address including postcode
  • Approximate floor area
  • Full drawings
  • NCT file (this comes from your commercial EPC)

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

  • What the buildings is used for
  • Number of floors

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 action plan to you upon receipt of payment. Our pricing includes the lodgement of the action plan 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 between 5-7 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 Section 63 Action Plan.

Our prices start from £199.95 + VAT, dependant on size and location of the property. Use this online booking tool to quickly get a quote for your Sound Test.

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