The Housing Bill implementing the EU Directive for marketed homes Linn Rafferty National Energy Services and the Ene

1. The Housing Bill implementing the EU Directive for marketed homes Linn Rafferty National Energy Services and the Energy Advice Providers Group

2. What the Directive requires • Article 7: • Energy performance certificate must be made available whenever a building is built, sold or let • Provided to the prospective occupant – that is, before the decision to purchase/rent is made • Applies to dwellings and non dwellings, new and old alike • There are some exemptions, eg places of worship, homes used for less than 4 months a year, historic buildings • Certificate must contain benchmarks and recommendations to improve energy performance (but no requirement to carry them out) • Article 10: • Calls for qualified/accredited experts to prepare them

3. Energy Performance Report – why? • BECAUSE.. European Directive requires us to do so; • BUT… • UK government are “leading the way” on combating global climate change • Buildings are the biggest culprit (with homes contributing more greenhouse gases than other buildings) • Most people don’t realise this – if they believe that climate change is happening, they blame it on other factors, such as transport • We need to change attitudes by raising awareness • We can also help people to save money on their fuel bills

4. Built, sold or let? • Marketed sales of new homes and existing homes • Non marketed sales of both (right to buy, portfolio) • Private Landlords – new and existing homes • Social Landlords – new and existing homes • The Housing Bill only applies to marketed sales • And within the Housing Bill: The Home Condition Report only applies to existing homes • The regulatory systems for non marketed homes and rented homes are not yet decided

5. Who, what, when?

6. The Housing Bill • Bill (part 5) introduces the Home Information Pack • Manifesto commitment 2001 – “to make it easier for people buying and selling homes through a new seller’s pack” • New approach to marketing homes.. • HIP contains all the legal documents (LA searches, land registry, etc) that are normally obtained after the sale • HIP for an existing house contains the Home Condition Report, a completely new type of survey • Seller pays for survey instead of buyer • Buyers are aware of any problems before making an offer • Seller is also made aware of problems and can fix them before marketing if he wants the best price

7. The Home Condition Report • Only for existing homes, not new build • provides more information than the Homebuyers Survey and Valuation currently chosen by most buyers • Can be relied on by buyer, seller and lender • Reports on condition of all relevant parts of the home and gives a condition rating on scale of 1-3 for each element • Is an objective report on the condition of the home, delivered to prescribed standards • Contains an energy efficiency assessment • Has been tested by BRE in both technical and consumer trials • Currently being tested in combination with the energy survey element

8. Electronic reporting • HCR is an electronic report stored on a central databank • Fast delivery, consistency and integrity • Reports will be easy to read, in a common format • HCRs will be prepared using • Unique report reference number for audit purpose • Electronic data recorded by a Home Inspector • Home Inspectors given a unique reference number showing their authority to work • Commercially provided software, approved by the HI Certification Scheme • Software will send surveys to a central online database for safe keeping and audit

9. Software example Integrated energy and home condition report software from SAVA

10. Home Condition Report extract

11. Home Inspectors • HCRs will be prepared only by registered Home Inspectors: • the Energy Performance Certificate also! • Certification scheme is currently being researched (HICB) • HIs will work to National Occupational Standards developed by PSNTO (now Asset Skills) • Qualification via the Awarding Body for the Built Environment (ABBE) • Quality Assurance for the Energy Report will sit alongside the quality assurance for the HCR • Conduct and complaints • Recruitment

12. Standards and qualifications • National Occupational Standards developed via industry consultation • They define the competencies and skills required • Qualification is awarded by the Awarding Body for the Built Environment (ABBE) • Vocationally Related Qualification (VRQ not NVQ) • To gain the qualification requires two things: • Present a portfolio of evidence to an Assessment Centre approved by ABBE • Pass the end test, set by ABBE • Separate, complementary NOS to be developed for Energy Inspection • A separate energy specific qualification

13. Quality Assurance • Consumer is key to the success of Directive • Home buyers need to understand and trust the reports, be motivated to install the suggested improvements • Consumer research shows they need the assurance of a quality controlled scheme to give them that trust • QA Involves.. • Adopting a national methodology • Software approval • Training & Qualification • Registration (and option to revoke licence to practice) • Monitoring, including independent repeat inspections, against a specified quality standard • Code of conduct & complaints procedure • Insurance and reporting

14. Need to recruit and train inspectors • 7500 qualified Inspectors are needed • PSNTO research.. • Likely pool at day one is 10,000 to 18,000 practitioners with some or most of the skills required • Upskilling is required for all.. • To meet National Occupational Standards • To work to the Directive’s requirements for energy reporting (MUST use authorised energy survey system) • To use modern IT to create the reports (all are electronic) • To prepare for the end test (ABBE Award, compulsory for all)

15. Developing the energy report • FAERO members each had their own reports • EST its Home Energy Check; BRE had an example created for an ODPM consultation exercise • Which design works best to motivate action? Do any of them? • Consumer trial and consultation via the EEPH • We put 3 options (EST, BRE, FAERO) to focus groups and the EEPH • Issues of energy efficiency need to be addressed from the home buyers perspective, reflecting their priorities and motivations

16. Focus group recommendations 1 • Look like a professional survey • Use the A-G rating scale • Review the use of the SAP score

17. Focus group recommendations 2 • Benchmark the comparison against a target for the home, not against an average score • Prioritise the recommended measures • Give broad cost guidance, rather than specific costs • Link the improvement measures to the uplift in energy rating

18. Recommended improvements

19. Focus group recommendations 3 • Explain the technical terms • Separate the “no cost/low cost” behavioural tips from the main report • Provide a separate section on the environmental story

20. Focus group recommendations 4 • Take advantage of the opportunity for follow up communication • Encourage vendors to take action before marketing • Details of focus group research is on the FAERO and Partnership websites

21. So what is an energy rating? • A way of describing the energy performance of a home that is independent of the size of the home, or how the occupiers use their home • Used to compare homes of different ages, sizes, types, on a level playing field • Gives a straightforward indication of how good is the home’s standard of energy efficiency • Expressed as a SAP rating – a number between 1 and 120 - the higher the number, the better • Can also be expressed on an A – G scale (like white goods)

22. Two ratings – SAP & RDSAP • SAP = Standard Assessment Procedure • Already exists (since 1995) • Used only for new build homes (where complete data is available from plans and specifications) • RDSAP = Reduced Data Standard Assessment Procedure • Had to be developed for the Directive • Used where the full SAP data can’t all be seen - in a survey or inspection of an existing home

23. Who, what, how, when?

24. What is a condition rating? • The Home Condition Report gives a statement about the condition of all relevant parts of the home – a condition rating • Each is rated is on a scale of 1 to 3 – good to awful • Much more precise than existing Homebuyers Survey and Valuation (HSV) • How easy is it to add the energy rating data? Can the two be combined in one inspection? • And so, lets look at the field trials..

25. RDSAP Technical field trials • 15 inspectors, 20 different dwellings • Inspectors had participated in last year’s HCR field trials so were already familiar with gathering HCR data • Field trial assessed how they coped with gathering the energy data at the same time as HCR • About half had already had energy survey training • All were trained to collect the energy data – but no background specialist knowledge provided • We found quite a lot of variability on several of the data items – sometimes way too much! • But we have confirmed that it takes very little extra time to collect, as part of a Home Condition inspection

26. Not all homes varied • Inspectors were almost unanimous on the data collected for this small Housing Association bungalow: • And on average the energy survey took 30 mins • (87 for the combined HCR/ER)

27. Some homes were less easy • but there was much less agreement on this large, privately owned detached home: • on average the energy survey took 58 mins (2 1/2 hours for the combined HCR/ER)

28. e.g: differences in measurements • Inspectors were surprised at how much their measurements varied.. • Heat loss perimeter on ground floor: • 32.64m – 50.60m • On first floor: • 42.28m – 50.20m • Ground floor area: • 65.0m – 125.9m

29. e.g: identifying a conservatory

30. e.g: is it a conservatory? • Does this house have a conservatory? • 11 said yes, 1 said no • Is the conservatory heated? • 5 said heated, 6 said unheated • Makes quite a difference for a large conservatory, with long glazed walls, since the energy used in heating a conservatory is considerable • An unheated conservatory shelters the outside wall and so it saves some energy

31. What difference does it make?

32. What difference does it make?

33. What difference does it make?

34. What difference does it make?

35. Summary & conclusions • For the simpler properties, all agreed on the data • Most properties showed variation in some areas • Sometimes this made a big difference to the result • Good training is a must! • Even with basic training, the 15 surveyors made significant mistakes • With no training, the mistakes would have had even more impact • Improving the training courses is an important output of the field trial

36. Conclusions - training • Feedback from participants suggests that the training must include: • more detail – which data items matter most? • more examples – particularly of difficult properties • more guidance on making judgements • practical use of the energy rating software

37. Conclusions – improvements • Inspectors did not understand how the RDSAP system chose the improvement measures to put into the report • They often cancelled them when not necessary • Sometimes the correct recommendations were not made because the inspectors recorded the wrong data • If they had been able to see the recommendations via software, they would have better understood them • Home Inspectors will need access to the energy rating software while conducting their surveys (or very soon afterwards)

38. Progress of the Bill • The Housing Bill was published for comment in 2003 and introduced to Commons last December • Third reading in the House of Lords on 13th September • Ministers again dismissed suggestions that Home Information Packs might not have to be ready at the start of marketing • Reason - the aim of the packs was to address ‘upfront’ the ‘root cause’ of consumer dissatisfaction with property transactions • Went to Report stage on 13th October • Royal Assent still anticipated by end November • The position today??

39. What next for FAERO? • Completion of RDSAP development, possibly a consumer trial • Define the requirements for new homes within HIP (using the SAP method) • Define the remaining legal framework for providing Energy Performance Certificates • [Housing Bill only provides for marketed sales of homes - EPCs are required for all buildings, whenever built, sold or let] • Set up Energy Certificate provider schemes • [Different schemes for new and “second hand” homes]

40. What next for Home Inspectors? • Register with an Assessment Centre (SAVA A.C. is approved and ready to open now, there are others) • Take training on RDSAP (& probably other aspects of HCR) • Get assessed against the National Occupational Standards • Pass the ABBE Diploma in Home Inspection & register as a Home Inspector • Register with a Home Inspector Operator and Energy Certificate provider (may be the same organisation) • Undertake HCR inspections.. Voluntary basis from mid 2006, legally obligated from 2007

41. And opportunities for all • Directive requires certificates from Jan 2006 • Energy Certificates for dwellings will be the first! • Commercial opportunities and career development • Consumer confidence is paramount • At last, a comprehensive and accurate information source on the UK’s building stock • A framework to allow fiscal incentives to be used to encourage take up of measures • Innovative off the shelf solutions for consumers, driven by EEC • We need to start now

42. More information from.. www.thehicb.org.uk www.faero.co.uk www.sava.org.uk www.nher.co.uk www.nesltd.co.uk www.elmhurstenergy.co.uk