Energy Efficiency: £3,500 cost cap to take effect from 1st April
More landlords will be required to improve the energy efficiency of the coldest homes in England and Wales, the government has revealed.
Owners of homes in the F and G bands have been required since April to upgrade to band E or be stripped of the right to have new tenancies.
The government previously proposed that landlords who faced costs exceeding £2500 for putting in new insulation and other measures would be exempt from making the upgrades. However, they have announced it is lifting this cap to £3500.
Where upgrades are necessary, the average cost to improve an F or G rated property to a band E is expected to be around £1,200 – far below the upper ceiling being brought forward under new regulations. Examples of measures include: installing floor insulation, low energy lighting or increasing loft insulation. If upgrades will cost more than £3,500, landlords will be able to register for an exemption.
The majority of landlords will be unaffected by the change, because their properties will already be compliant.
The regulations will come into force for all existing tenancies on 1st April 2020.
