Independent body calls for greater support for landlords in meeting EPC targets

An independent body has urged the government to provide landlords with financial support to help meet Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) targets.

The Committee on Fuel Poverty (CFP) responded to the government’s consultation on the Warm Homes Plan, arguing that landlords will need additional funding to achieve EPC C targets by 2030.

The committee, which is sponsored by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, is calling for greater government support to help improve fuel-poor homes in the private rented sector.

Well-targeted support for landlords

The independent body said in the consultation: “If it is targeted in the right way, then the Warm Homes Fund could support landlords in achieving PRS Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards.

“However, it will be difficult to get the required level of traction and momentum in a notoriously fragmented and diverse space.

“The fund will have to ensure that the right level of resource is allocated to make it properly focused, well-targeted and made accessible to the right landlord groups if it is to have a meaningful end state impact for fuel-poor tenants.

“Targeting lower-income landlords will enable retrofit work to be completed that may not otherwise have been possible. Equally, there needs to be a clear framework of governance and assurance to ensure resources are well spent with quality outcomes.”

Go further in supporting landlords

The National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA) has welcomed the support of the CFP and is calling on the government to go further in supporting landlords.

The NRLA writes on its website that it encourages lenders to develop products created specifically for properties with lower EPC ratings, helping to direct support to homes that require the most significant improvements.

The landlord group is also calling on the government to recognise the diversity of the private rented sector, including the different needs of small and large landlords, and warns that without support landlords will fail to reach many of the properties that need upgrading.