Landlords are facing big bills for double glazing and insulation under Labour’s tough energy efficiency rules – with fears they will have to raise rents.
The government has announced all private rental properties will need an EPC rating of at least C by the end of the decade, rather than the E required currently.
Ministers insisted the proposals can save renters £240 a year on average on their energy bills and lift up to half a million households out of fuel poverty.
But critics have warned that under half of properties currently meet the standard, and the costs of the ‘misguided’ plan will ‘inevitably be passed onto renters’.
Under the plans, landlords will have the choice of how to meet energy efficiency standards, with options such as loft insulation, cavity wall insulation and double glazing.
Solar panels, batteries and smart meters, or low carbon heating such as heat pumps can also be deployed.
The Government is proposing a maximum £15,000 cap beyond which landlords will not have to spend to meet the EPC C rating.
The cap could be £10,000 if tenants are charged lower rents or homes are in a lower council tax band.
Officials pointed to support for heat pumps from the boiler upgrade scheme and the warm homes.
Some 48 per cent of rented properties meet the EPC C grade as it stands.
It is estimated that the average cost to landlords of complying with the proposals will be £6,100 to £6,800 by 2030.
Previous proposals requiring landlords to meet EPC C standards for private rented homes by 2028 were axed by then prime minister Rishi Sunak when he watered down a series of green policies in September 2023.
Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner said today: ‘For far too long we have seen too many tenants plagued by shoddy and poor conditions in their homes and this government is taking swift action to right the wrongs of the past.
‘Through our Plan for Change we are driving up housing standards, improving quality of life, and slashing energy bills for working people and families.’
In a round of interviews this morning, Net Zero Secretary Ed Miliband told BBC Breakfast: ‘I think landlords are going to have to foot at least some significant part of this bill.
‘We think that’s fair and right to ask landlords to do that.’
New energy performance certificates are also planned, but homes that are already rated A-C under the current system will be considered compliant until the expire, the Government said.
Acting shadow energy secretary Andrew Bowie said: ‘This misguided announcement will do nothing to lower energy bills in this country.
‘On top of the warnings that Angela Rayner is nowhere near meeting her house building targets, and her Renters Rights Bill reducing supply and raising rents – Labour are proposing burdening landlords with heavy costs, which will inevitably be passed onto renters, instead of working to deliver cheaper and more secure energy for this country.’
