Dunedin Canmore Group launch Energy Performance Certificate Service » Housing » 24dash.com

Edinburgh based Dunedin Canmore Group, has just launched a high quality, value for money service providing Energy Performance Certificates for Registered Social Landlords in the East of Scotland.

The service which went live on Monday 5th January coincides with European Union regulations that have now come into legal effect in Scotland. In a statement this week, The National Landlords Association has warned that; “From 4th January 2009, all landlords starting new tenancies in Scotland must provide tenants with an EPC or risk being hit with a fine of £5,000 for each rental property they own which does not have a certificate.”

The legislation comes direct from the EU Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD), an initiative set up as part of the government’s strategy to achieve a sustainable environment and meet climate change targets agreed under the Kyoto Protocol.

In response to this, DCG has launched the new service to help registered social landlords comply with the new requirements by providing an affordable and reliable option. Dunedin Canmore Group employs highly experienced property management staff, six of whom are fully trained energy assessors who can prepare EPC’s, and Stock Condition Surveys for all residential properties.

All Dunedin Canmore assessors are accredited by the Building Research Establishment, an approved organisation with Scottish Building Standards Division to provide EPCs. The EPC itself includes an energy rating, as well as advice on how to make cost effective improvements to the building to make it more energy efficient. The ratings will be similar to those currently used for white goods, ranging from A to G, with A the best and G the worst.

Ewan Fraser, Chief Executive Dunedin Canmore Group commented; ‘We have enjoyed a successful launch this week with over 70 orders being placed for EPC’s by registered social landlords in the Edinburgh area. This figure indicates that Landlords are indeed trying to comply with the new regulations and it should only be a matter of time before this initiative becomes fully implemented in Edinburgh and across the UK. The only difficulty so far has been a misconception over the energy rating system.

Landlords have seemed disappointed when given a C grade, which in reality is actually pretty good. The average grade across Scotland is currently a grade D and even new build properties utilizing the best available technology would typically receive a B rating at best. We want to reassure people that achieving this level is perfectly acceptable and its good to see that the energy system is already making people think more about how they might improve energy efficiency.’