By Steve Roulstone
Recent changes in the way in which EPC documents have to be displayed are quite frankly being made to look ridiculous by the way in which they are being translated. It is of course well known that there are always areas that need clarification when new legislation is introduced, but the plethora of new requirements being launched at our industry at present does beg the question, why is it so unclear how to introduce changes that, if we got them wrong, are subject to a financial penalty?
EPC Displays.
The clarity is supposed to be how and where the information shown on the EPC is displayed. There are three areas of concern, when a property is being viewed, when it is being advertised and when it is being displayed. The problem lies with the latter, but all affected areas have had to be clarified.
Property viewings.
This for us was the easiest to deal with, as the EPC has to be available for all potential Tenants when a viewing takes place. As our staff carry I Pads with the EPC stored for every property being marketed, along with as much information as a Tenant may require, this was easy to deal with. All we needed to get clarified was that an electronic version, with a back up of the written version being supplied either in the post or by e-mail. It is.
Advertising.
This includes both the paper version of advertising as well as through the web. Again, after some suggestions that the EPC would have to be placed alongside each property advertised in the paper, it was confirmed that it does not need to be in this format. Good job really or this post would have had two targets for the ridiculous suggestion of the year!
Display advert.
Now for the area that has me looking to the skies in frustration! It is well known that property details are in by far the majority of Lettings or Estate Agent offices produced in A4 size, or something very close. This includes the window display and in our case as with many others on a rolling TV display. Well somebody has now decided that the front page of the EPC should be included on page one of the document displaying the property, if the document includes for a rented property a photograph and the price as well! Not much point in producing it if it does not!
New Style.
They also state that it has to be page one of the new style, but that the new style is not needed for those that have already been produced (They last ten years for a rental property) so firstly, how can we show the new style unless we pay for an updated version? If you visit the EPC report retrieval site www.epcregister.com to recover a report it is STILL shown in the old style?
Ridiculous requirement!
But worst of all, is how can a form designed for A4 reproduction, with close on 50 lines of information be shown clearly ON an A4 sheet of paper and leave any room for anything else to be displayed on the same sheet of paper? Does this mean that all property display details are going to have to be re-produced in A3 to allow room? Are every single Estate and Letting Agent in the country going to have to change their display units costing £millions? This is (once again) an effect of the changes that has just never been thought through, the practical requirements and sheer ability to be able to comply with the need to show the EPC in the manner described is just impossible?
Conclusion
I just do not have one! I just hope that common sense prevails in the end and that a proper solution is found, in the meantime all Agents are left wondering what to do whilst being in danger of having a fine clapped on them for failing to display EPC details in the new format! Or do we just change all internal and window display units and spend a fortune changing them? Just in case!!
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