From 2007 the Government is proposing to introduce a Home Condition Report (HCR), which all sellers of homes will be required to purchase from a licensed home inspector. Included in the HCR will be an energy report (titled Section H: Energy performance certificate) which will provide information on the overall energy performance characteristics of the property and ways in which its energy efficiency could be improved. The introduction of the report will go a long way to raising consumer awareness of sustainable energy issues in the home.

As required by the EU Directive on the energy performance of buildings, the report will include an (SAP based) energy efficiency rating for the property. This Directive also applies to rental properties, however only an energy report and not the full HCR will be required. The legal mechanism by which energy reports for rented properties will be provided to tenants has not yet been decided.

Two previous consultations have taken place with the Partnership, the first on the design of the energy report and the second on the recommendations for energy efficiency improvements. Partnership members are now invited to comment on the final draft design for the energy report and on associated material regarding the improvement recommendations and the definition of the A to G bands.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

Reduced Data SAP (RDSAP)

FAERO are now finalising RDSAP, the simplified SAP methodology that will be used to calculate the energy ratings of existing buildings, as required by the European Directive.

RDSAP uses systems similar to those in existing FAERO site survey software to deduce the data that cannot be collected during the inspection. It recommends energy efficiency measures that could be implemented in the property and calculates the potential energy rating following their implementation.

Recommendations for energy efficiency improvements/measures

A list of all possible improvement measures is included in the document RDSAP v1, attached below. This list was consulted on via the Partnership in 2004.

This list only includes measures that are modelled in SAP2001 (the government's energy rating procedure for dwellings). Energy efficiency measures that are not included in SAP2001, for example renewable options, cannot be evaluated in this way. However, SAP2005 (the updated version of SAP that is expected come into force in England and Wales early in 2006) will include more renewable options, including PV and micro CHP, and so it should be possible to include such recommendations in the future. It is intended that RDSAP will be revised to comply with SAP2005 later this year.

Each energy efficiency measure has linked explanatory text that describes the improvement in simple terms, providing further explanation to the reader, which was shown in research to be strongly desirable to consumers.

When a report is generated the selection of the recommended measures will be made by specially designed software, working to the principles defined in RDSAP. This will ensure that only those measures that are appropriate for the particular property are included in the report.

The inspectors creating these energy reports will have the option to delete recommendations that are not appropriate due to the particular situation of the property (for example, it isn't appropriate to recommend cavity wall insulation in a very exposed site). For this reason, they will also be required to understand the suggested improvements.

Inspectors will also be asked to provide clarification to householders about the energy efficiency rating and the suggested improvements, but as we understand it they will not be prepared to give advice. The report will therefore refer homebuyers to the Energy Efficiency Advice Centres for more information and advice.

CONSUMER RESEARCH

The aim of the energy report is to encourage buyers, and possibly sellers, to take action to improve the energy efficiency of the home. Three different pieces of research (in the form of consumer focus groups) have been conducted to guide the development of the report, the first in 2004 and the latest in 2005.

Energy Report Development Research

In the first set of research, three proposed report formats were submitted, by the Energy Saving Trust, the Building Research Establishment and the Federation of Authorised Energy Rating Organisations (FAERO).

Click here to view the research findings

The research recommendations were used to create one design for the report.

Click here to view the resulting report design.

Energy Label Research

In March 2005 research was carried out on five proposed designs for the label element of the report (which provided an A to G rating of the energy efficiency of the property).  The five variations of the label design were created in an attempt to try and overcome the potentially demotivating issue that consumers having implemented all measures suggested in the report could find themselves not moving up a band in the energy rating. 

Attached below are the designs which were tested and the research findings.

Click here to view the Energy Label Research.

Click here to view the Energy Label Research Designs.
 

Carbon Dioxide Indicator Research

While it was clear from the energy label research that the original version of the label was preferred, a requirement was put in place for a carbon dioxide indicator to be included on the report and given the same prominence as the energy label. This required revised designs for the front page of the report to be designed and tested.

3 designs routes were created and tested with 2 variations in 2 routes and 3 in the other.

The main variations to be tested in each route were the use of 2 or 3 ratings:

• SAP - Energy Efficiency Rating
• C02 indicator - Environmental Impact Rating
• Fuel Consumption Rating

The research was carried out in June 2005 and attached below are the designs which were tested and the research findings.

Click here to view the Carbon Dioxide Indicator Research

Click here to view the Carbon Dioxide Indicator Research Designs

FEEDBACK REQUESTED

Following feedback from the carbon dioxide indicator research and the earlier technical field trials of the RDSAP methodology, a final draft version of the report has now been completed.

The steering group would now like to receive feedback on the report's design and content from all interested parties from the energy efficiency industry.

In particular the steering group would be interested to receive feedback on the following areas:

• Specific areas of the design
• On page 2 - Two options are presented for Page 2. For each energy efficiency measure suggested, one option provides both the energy efficiency rating and environmental impact rating for each measure; the other option presents energy efficiency ratings for each measure and presents the resulting overall environmental impact rating. Please let us know which option you prefer, and why
• On page 4 - showing the benchmark for new builds on the back page rather than including it in the label on the front page as in previous versions of the design

Click here to view the current version of the Energy Performance Certificate

• The list of all the possible energy efficiency measures to be recommended and the accompanying explanatory text

Click here to view the current list of energy efficiency recommendation and explanatory text

Click here to view the RDSAP Methodology

• The attached note on options for the definition of the A to G bands relative to the SAP scale. Comments that would help to identify the option that is generally preferred would be particularly welcome.

Click her to view the note on the definition of the A to G bands
 

FEEDBACK SHOULD BE SUBMITTED BY FRIDAY 26TH AUGUST 2005 TO TAMARA MAURO-TRUJILLO  tamara.mauro@est.org.uk