The Energy Efficiency (Private Rented Property) (England and Wales) Regulations 2015 introduced the requirement for a minimum E rating for energy performance certificates (EPCs) for all privately rented properties in England and Wales.

As someone already invested in energy efficiency – as a qualified domestic energy assessor (DEA) since 2017 – this was, I felt, an opportunity for local authorities (LAs)to enforce this legislation and do right by the many hundreds and thousands of tenants living in poorly insulated and inadequately heated properties throughout the country. Many of whom live in old, Victorian-era properties, as is the case in Nottingham, my patch.

I suppose it would be fair to say that the mechanism to tackle poor-quality housing was already in place, via the Housing Act 2004. However, we can all appreciate the fact that most, if not all, LA housing teams are reactive in addressing the poor standard of accommodation that exists in a percentage of the private rented sector.

With complaints outstripping resources and available officers to respond to this issue, and after seeing year-on-year reduced government funding for LA mandatory services, where would the funding to implement this legislation come from? From Nottingham City Council’s perspective, the answer arrived in 2021, in the form of a competition to bid for funding of an eight-month project, with monies provided by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and delivered through the Midlands Energy Hub, for the Midlands area. At that time, we were fortunate enough to have a principal environmental health officer (PEHO) who had their finger on the pulse and ensured approval was obtained for Nottingham to submit a bid.

After several nervous weeks of waiting, we were finally informed that we, along with a further 59 other LAs, had been successful. For me, this was fantastic news. When inspecting properties in my role as a regulatory compliance officer with the housing team, I had often observed the hazard of excess cold: a primary hazard to reduce or remove. Excess cold is a blight within the private housing sector that affects many tenants. The soaring cost of living, especially energy prices, which has resulted in many poorer households dropping into fuel poverty, meant that in real terms people were struggling to afford to heat their homes. What warmth they could generate would quickly dissipate through uninsulated lofts.

The funding allowed Nottingham City to implement a small team of one part-time PEHO, one full-time environmental health officer (EHO), one full-time regulatory compliance officer/domestic energy assessor (RCO/DEA) (me) and two full-time administrative officers (AOs). We had to be quick off the mark – time was limited, and there were literally thousands of F- and G-rated EPCs to be checked within the Nottingham City conurbation. In addition, a policy had to be drafted and approved, letters and notices also, and a procedure drawn up.

Within a couple of weeks, we had searched the EPC register, via the open-data facility, and a comprehensive spreadsheet of all F- and G-rated EPCs for privately rented properties within the city had been compiled. The numbers were staggering: over 2,000! Personally, I was shocked. It was well and truly game on!

The big question was: Where to start? The PEHO decided that we would break the data down into wards; there are 20 in total in Nottingham City. Each property was allocated to a spreadsheet based on the ward in which it was located. Next, the AOs were tasked with creating records for each property, and searches had to be done to identify property owners by checking Land Registry and Council Tax records. (We had sought and gained approval to use these records.) The council’s own database was checked for properties licensed under the mandatory additional and selective licensing schemes that were in force. In all but a few cases, we now had names and addresses for the owners of these properties. For those that we didn’t, it was a case of visiting individual properties and speaking with the tenants to establish owner details. Whilst this was being done, the EHO and RCO were tasked with drafting letters, compliance notices and penalty notices ready for our legal team’s approval.

Our first letters were sent in September 2021, and it wasn’t long before we had achieved our first improved property. More came soon after, and to their credit, the mood of most property owners was one of acceptance and understanding. However, and as we all appreciate, there is always a minority who choose to ignore their legal obligations. Our first compliance notice was served in December 2021, which led to our first penalty notice being issued in February 2022.

At the end of the project in March 2022, we had investigated in excess of 550 properties. A total of 33 G-rated properties and 96 F-rated properties had been improved and were now at the minimum E rating, with the average improved banding being D for this batch. The non-compliance we encountered, whilst unfortunate, did represent just a small percentage of landlords. During the eight months the project ran we served a total of four compliance notices, one of which resulted in a penalty notice being served for non-compliance.

Being a qualified DEA, I had a better understanding than most LA officers of the key elements of an EPC, something that proved to be of assistance. During the project, we unfortunately had quite a few EPCs submitted to us that were erroneous. It was apparent that, in particular, wall type was being incorrectly assessed: walls of a Victorian-era property were being inputted as being of cavity construction, and some were claimed as being filled cavity (insulated.) Another EPC seemed wildly exaggerated, with a DEA assessing it as having achieved a C from a G-rating, when it was clear to us upon investigation that it had not. Conversely, I remember a conversation with a property owner who was mystified as to why, after installing a new gas condensing boiler, double glazing and room in roof insulation, their property had only achieved an E rating. It became apparent during this conversation that the DEA had not actually visited the property to conduct the inspection. The spectre of Google or drive-by EPCs, something I had naively perceived as being a myth, was in fact a reality. One EPC supplied to us could not be found on the EPC register; it transpired a photoshopped EPC had been submitted.

Many difficult telephone and email conversations ensued with DEAs; these resulted in one of them agreeing to re-assess a property and two more being reported to their accreditation bodies. The end result was one DEA being struck off their scheme, and the accrediting body paying for nine EPCs to be re-conducted.

Looking at the MEES enforcement side of things, I believe a more robust approach to auditing EPCs has to be implemented to eradicate such situations as described above. Whilst errors do occur, and in truth I have made them myself, there is a clear problem of a rogue DEA element willing to bend the rules. Tying in with Nottingham City’s carbon-neutral agenda for 2028, we were also able to assess how much CO 2 had been prevented from going into the air of Nottingham as a result of the improvements made to these properties. When assessing the original EPC, we were able to measure the previous estimated CO 2 emissions produced by the property against the new estimate. The figure achieved represented a saving of 438.9 tonnes of CO 2 .

The results of the project were a success; moreover, the senior leadership team were so impressed by the project and its results that the decision was made to maintain the team, albeit in a limited capacity of one RCO and one AO. This was due in no small part to what I perceive to be a very forward-thinking operations manager who clearly saw the benefit not only to the citizens of Nottingham but also to the housing team. The work of MEES ties in and assists with the role of the housing team in alleviating the hazards of both excess cold and damp and mould growth.

To date, as I write this blog in October 2024, we have investigated approximately 1,800 properties. For clarity, many of the properties we investigated were identified as being either owner-occupied, social housing, commercial or other. The reason for this is DEAs had failed to accurately identify the property tenure – another element of the EPC found wanting. In total, 321 properties have been improved, with 109 G- rated and 212 F-rated properties having been improved to a minimum E rating. The average improved banding for the targeted properties remains at D.

We have now served 104 compliance notices and 14 penalty notices, which has resulted in just over £55,000 in penalties being issued. We have had 4 penalty notices appealed and are awaiting directions from the General Regulatory Chamber for a fifth. So far, we have successfully defended all appeals. In terms of CO 2 emissions, the running total stands at 1,150 tonnes of the gas that hasn’t reached the air of Nottingham. MEES not only assists in alleviating some of the poorest housing conditions in terms of improving heating and thermal efficiency, but it also goes some way in reducing air pollution.

Personally, I welcome the new government’s proposal to re-introduce the requirement for a C-rating to be achieved by 2030. Yes, I do understand the concerns of property owners and managing agents concerns regarding the cost of compliance, and whilst I do not want to be seen to be taking sides in this matter, the subject of energy efficiency in the private rented sector has been on the table for many years. From my perspective, it has long been known that this day was coming, and plans to comply with these regulations should have been made for this eventuality.

I have thoroughly enjoyed every minute of my time enforcing the MEES regulations. For me, there is no greater reward than confirming a new heating system and insulation as having been installed in a property. As sentimental as it sounds, knowing the tenants of these properties – some of whom are the most vulnerable members of our society – now have a fighting chance of keeping their homes warm in the colder winter months gives me great satisfaction!

To all my colleagues out there who have or continue to enforce these regulations, I wish you all the best in your work.

Mark Thomas Regulatory Compliance Officer, Safer Housing team Nottingham City Council

What can RHE do to help?

RHE recognise that local authorities can struggle implementing and enforcing new legislation due to the lack of available staff to write procedures/policies and new documents, particularly legislation that involves financial penalties. Here at RHE, our housing experts can alleviate this burden:

• RIAMS subscription: On our RIAMS platform we have template notices to assist you in your regulatory activities. We have a MEES procedure, and templates for compliance notices and penalty notices.

• Housing Consultancy: We develop and provide MEES enforcement packages tailored to your individual needs. Every authority needs a financial penalty policy to enforce the regulations which we can write for you. We can also provide solutions such as a full toolkit for your enforcement needs including bespoke enforcement procedures, letters and assistance with running landlord engagement events.

• Training: Our MEES training covers all of the essentials including the legislative framework, approaching engagement, creating warm homes, effective investigation, overcoming barriers, exemptions, and service of compliance and penalty notices. We can also add a bespoke element to the training to include calculation of financial penalties under your own financial penalty policy.

Contact our Housing Consulting Team to find out more.