The Property Energy Professionals Association (PEPA) which represents the Government appointed Accreditation Schemes for Energy Assessors has criticised Which? for not engaging in respect of its work on EPCs.
Following the publication of the Which? report on EPCs earlier in the year, PEPA criticised Which? for not engaging with the association in the research process. PEPA members are responsible for lodging all EPCs on the Government register (of which there are over 21 million to date) and for exercising governance over the quality of EPCs and auditing the work of
assessors. Mike Ockenden Head of Secretariat for PEPA said:
“It appears yet again, Which? has issued a press release about EPCs and at no stage engaged with us for input. We do not know the selection process for how they commissioned the 12s EPC, but to use the findings to impugn the quality of over 20 million EPCs is frankly irresponsible. The irony is that PEPA actually agrees with the call for EPC reform and could have provided input to Which? on the extensive reform programme that is already underway, both by way of the EPC Action Plan and an upcoming consultation on EPC Reform itself.
Information about the EPC Action Plan is publicly available on the Government website, and PEPA has been closely involved in its creation and in its delivery. Ockenden added ‘PEPA has long campaigned to demystify EPCs for the industry and consumers and we again extend our hand out to Which? to engage with us.”
One Response
Since the government indicated a phasing out of gas heating some 20 years ago I have invested in electric only upgrades, dispensing with gas entirely – expensive German radiators, showers only, under sink water heaters ( less energy lost in long pipes), insulated walls, between rafters and 4″ below, insulated floors and still haven’t achieved a C on two older properties even though tenants have the windows open in winter. Not achieving better rating largely because the EPC is driven by cheaper price of gas not the energy efficiency of the place.
EPCs are a disgracefully under thought invention introduced to give new roles to those assessors who invested in new careers which were the abandoned discredited Home Seller Pack. Government interventions usually create nothing but havoc but they’ve excelled here in wasting considerable amounts of other folks money on something (the calculation outcomes) of no credible substance or value (aside from needing the bit of paper) and whose false credibility is only kept afloat by a media lacking inquisitiveness and vested interests.