Failure to install heat pumps could knock house values
‘This is nudge factor on steroids, to technologies that are unproven, unpopular and don’t work very well’
HOUSEHOLDERS who refuse to install heat pumps could see their properties fall in value under a government review.
A “root and branch” review of how energy performance certificates (EPCS) are calculated will boost the households that use heat pumps, remote-controlled thermostats and other eco inventions backed by ministers.
The system, which will be in place by 2025, is designed to reflect the Government’s commitment to decarbonising homes as part of its net-zero drive. But it may also mean that those who do not adopt green technology in their homes will receive a lower score, which can reduce the value of a property or make it more difficult to rent out.
Landlords have already been told that properties with a rating of less than “C” will be illegal to lease after 2027, while mortgage lenders have offered preferential rates to those buying houses rated “A” or “B”.
The latest move to change the calculations behind EPCS could force homeowners to adopt home energy alterations, or face a costly downgrade.
The Building Research Establishment, which is conducting the review, said the new system would be “better suited to modern and dynamic technologies which will help decarbonise the UK’S housing stock, such as heat pumps, renewables, storage technologies and smart control devices”.
Despite a recent VAT cut on heat pumps, solar panels and other home renovations in Rishi Sunak’s spring statement, trade bodies have warned it is still prohibitively expensive to convert all but the best-insulated homes.
Data show around 1 per cent of UK properties have already been fitted with heat pumps – one of the lowest take-up rates in Europe.
Craig Mackinlay, the chairman of the Net Zero Scrutiny Group, said altering the EPC calculations to favour properties with green technology was “statism gone mad”.
“This is ‘nudge factor’ on steroids, towards certain technologies that are unproven, unpopular and don’t work very well,” he told The Daily Telegraph.
“I’d have laughed at economies years ago where they did this sort of thing.”
John Henderson, from the Building Research Establishment, said the new system would be “instrumental in the effort to decarbonise the nation’s existing housing stock”.
“As the new methodology will improve EPC accuracy, energy efficiency measurements will be more reliable than ever,” he said.
The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy was contacted for comment.