Sale of poorly insulated homes should be banned says government advisory body
Thursday, 6 August 2009 10:44 AM
Owners of poorly insulated homes should be banned from selling or renting them until they have invested in energy efficiency measures, according to a government advisory body.
According to a report in the Times today the Energy Saving Trust claims there are 5.5 million homes in the lowest two bands for energy performance - more than a fifth of all homes. It says the Trust is calling for these homes to be subjected to higher council tax bills and additional stamp duty as way to encourage homeowners to take measures to improve the energy efficiency of their homes.
The Times says the Trust believes the tougher measures will be needed if the government is to achieve its target of reducing carbon emissions from home heating by 29 per cent by 2020 and to "almost zero" by 2050.
It estimates that 85 per cent of the homes in bands F and G could be made fit to sell for less than £5,000. But owners of the remaining 15 per cent face paying as much as £10,000 on average to upgrade their homes to a new minimum standard.
Since last October, all homes offered for sale or rent have had to have an energy performance certificate, which ranks them in one of seven bands, from A to G. The trust is advising the government to take measures further and to make it illegal to sell homes rated lower than Band E from 2015 onwards.
There would be exceptions for listed buildings if the owners could prove that energy efficiency measures would damage their historic character.
At present there are very few A-rated homes, which include triple glazing, heavily insulated walls and ceilings and solar panels for heating water. F-rated homes include Victorian terraced properties with single-glazed sash windows and boilers at least ten years old. G-rated homes tend to be detached and have no loft insulation.
The Trust has also recommended planning permission for extensions should be made conditional on improvements to energy performance being made to the whole of the property at the same time.
The government admitted in its low carbon White Paper last month that existing measures, which focus on giving advice and offering grants towards the cost of insulation, might not be sufficient to achieve reductions in energy use.
