Landlord Duties on Energy, Heating and Home Safety

A landlord letting a home in the United Kingdom carries a bundle of duties that sit alongside the tenancy itself: the home must have a valid Energy Performance Certificate before it is advertised, the heating must work and be safe, the electrical installation must meet the electrical safety standards throughout the letting, and alarms must be fitted where combustion appliances are present. Where a heating appliance has been disconnected as unsafe, the landlord must provide emergency heating¹. In England, since 1 October 2022, all relevant landlords must provide a carbon monoxide alarm in any room used as living accommodation containing a fixed combustion appliance, gas cookers excluded².

On energy performance, the position in England and Wales is that certain domestic private rented property must reach EPC band E or above; a property rated F or G must be improved to at least an E before it can be rented out, or a valid exemption registered³. The certificate itself has been a statutory requirement whenever a property is bought, sold or rented since 2007⁵, and it must be made available free of charge to prospective tenants at the earliest opportunity and no later than when written information is first provided or the building is viewed⁶.

Above that floor sits a set of proposals, not yet law. The UK Government has proposed raising the minimum EPC standard for domestic private rented properties to band C by 2030³, with landlords required to meet a minimum score of EPC C against the fabric performance metric and either the heating system or smart readiness metric from 1 October 2030⁷. Scotland is consulting on its own draft regulations setting a minimum level of energy efficiency of a heat retention rating of C⁸. For a household, these duties are the main lever by which a rented home becomes less dependent on expensive imported heat: the tenant cannot usually change the fabric or the heating system, so the standard the landlord must meet is the standard the household lives with.

What a landlord is responsible for on heating and energy

The core duties divide into three strands: keeping the systems working and safe, holding the paperwork that proves it, and meeting a minimum standard of energy efficiency for the building itself.

On safety of the heating system, the rule that bites hardest is the emergency one. If a heating appliance has been disconnected, the landlord must provide emergency heating¹. That is a practical obligation, not a discretionary courtesy, and it arises at the moment an engineer condemns an appliance rather than when a replacement is eventually fitted.

On electrics, a landlord must ensure that the electrical safety standards are met during any period when the residential premises are occupied under a specified tenancy¹⁰. Official guidance on electrical safety standards in the private and social rented sectors is addressed to landlords, tenants and local councils alike¹¹, which reflects that enforcement sits with councils while the duty sits with the landlord. In Wales, the Fitness for Human Habitation regime places on the landlord the task of ensuring the inspection and testing of the electrical installation¹². Detail on inspection intervals and reports is covered on electrical safety checks in rented homes.

Where the landlord also supplies heat, a further layer applies. Ofgem's guidance is explicit that where the supplier is also the landlord for a property on a heat network, they should follow both the authorisation conditions and relevant housing legislation¹³. A heat supply contract can take the form of a lease, a tenancy agreement, a service charge agreement, a contract combining heat with other goods or services, or another agreement between the authorised person and the relevant consumer¹⁴. Where individual metering comes into effect for networks covered by the Landlord and Tenant Act that currently charge through service charges or rent, suppliers would be expected to charge for heat separately and unbundle the heat charge from service charges or rent¹⁵.

Finally, where energy work is carried out, responsibility for building regulations compliance does not rest with the contractor alone. In England and Wales the installation contractor must ensure the work complies with building regulations, and the energy device owner may also have a responsibility and could be served with an enforcement notice in cases of non-compliance¹⁶. Those having construction or building work done may also have duties under the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015¹⁷.

EPCs: the certificate every rental needs

An Energy Performance Certificate explains how energy efficient a building is and how it could be improved¹⁸. Certificates are needed whenever a property is built or marketed for sale or rent¹⁹, and one is required when selling or letting an existing building²⁰. Provision has been a statutory requirement since 2007⁵.

The duty falls on the person letting. Where a property is rented, it is the responsibility of the landlord to provide the certificate to the potential tenant²¹; as owner or landlord you must make sure you have one, make it available to potential buyers or tenants, and give a copy to the new owner when selling¹⁹. In Scotland, certificates must be provided when a building is advertised for sale or for let to a new tenant²².

The unit of assessment is the dwelling, not the building. A certificate is required for each self-contained dwelling, including houses in multiple occupation let under a joint tenancy agreement, and bedsits or similar units let as a whole²⁴. Where a building is leased to an agency which then rents it on to its own tenants, responsibility depends on the contract between the building owner and the agency²⁴. For shared ownership, responsibility sits with whichever party is initiating the sale or letting, and no certificate is required where a housing association sells an additional share to an existing shared owner²⁴. Consultation proposals would require short-term lets to have a valid certificate in place when let, irrespective of who is responsible for meeting energy costs²⁵.

Certificates are produced using standard information about buildings, which allows buyers and tenants to compare energy efficiency and likely heating and lighting costs before entering a contract¹⁹. That comparability is the point: it is why a certificate cannot be replaced by a landlord's own description of how warm a property is. More on how the sector's stock performs is set out on the UK private rented sector.

The minimum rating: E or better, and what F and G mean

The minimum standard of energy efficiency for certain domestic rented property in England and Wales is a rating of E or above³. This rests on the 2018 Minimum Level of Energy Efficiency standard, EPC band E⁴. Since 1 April 2018 there has been a requirement for properties rented out in the private rented sector to have a minimum efficiency rating of E on an Energy Performance Certificate²⁶.

If a property's rating is F or G, it must be improved to at least an E²⁷. A landlord currently letting a property rated F or G who has not already acted must improve it to a minimum of E or register an exemption where applicable⁴.

Scope matters as much as the number. The Energy Efficiency (Private Rented Property) (England and Wales) Regulations 2015 apply only to properties let on assured, regulated and agricultural tenancies that are legally required to have an EPC³. Private, local authority and other public body landlords are all covered, as well as a tenant who sub-lets a property falling within scope³. A property marketed for sale or let, or modified, in the past ten years will probably be legally required to have a certificate²⁸.

A low rating also shapes access to funding. Under ECO4, a tenant of a private landlord must be in a house with an energy efficiency rating of E, F or G to be eligible, and the owner's permission is required²⁹. The Energy Company Obligation makes grants and loans available to homeowner-occupiers, landlords and tenants for insulation works and heating installations³⁰, and it operates in England, Scotland and Wales³¹. The Warm Homes: Local Grant includes privately rented properties with an EPC rating of band D or E³². Routes to paying for work are set out on funding energy upgrades as a landlord.

Getting and paying for an EPC: assessors, cost and validity

A certificate must be carried out by an accredited energy assessor³³, and qualified assessors can be found on the EPC register²⁰. The assessor inspects the property and uses information such as type of construction, heating system and lighting³⁴.

What the certificate must contain is set in law. It must state the asset rating of the building, include reference values such as current legal standards and benchmarks, and include the register reference number, address, total useful floor area, assessor name and employer, issue date and accreditation scheme name³⁵. The building address is a required content item³⁶.

On timing and cost, the duty is worded tightly. The relevant person must make available free of charge a valid certificate to any prospective buyer or tenant at the earliest opportunity, and no later than when written information is first provided or the building is viewed⁶.

A copy must be given free of charge to the successful tenant or buyer²¹. On sale, the certificate must be provided to the purchaser free of charge, and this is a legal requirement³⁷. The certificate should be made available to buyers or prospective tenants at no cost, and buyers receive a copy from the seller that can be reused within the period of validity¹⁹. Reuse within validity is the answer to whether a fresh assessment is needed at each change of tenancy: it is not, provided the existing certificate is still valid.

For new building work, a certificate and notice must be given not later than five days after the building work has been completed³⁸. For new dwellings, the occupier should also be provided with the on-construction energy performance certificate that includes a recommendation report³⁹. In Scotland, a certificate is required as part of the Home Report on sale³⁷.

Assessment fees are set by the assessor rather than fixed by statute: what an EPC costs can depend on the type of house, its size, the number of bedrooms and where it is, and different assessors charge different fees. Published guidance puts the cost of getting a property onto the EPC register at £60 to £120¹. Whatever the seller pays, the certificate must be made available to a prospective buyer or tenant free of charge, and a buyer receives a copy that can be reused for the remainder of its validity¹.

Using the recommendations report to plan improvements

The certificate is accompanied by a recommendations report which provides more detailed information about improvement measures¹⁸. Each certificate comes with a report setting out cost-effective measures that homeowners or businesses can take to improve energy efficiency and the rating, such as low energy bulbs or upgrading insulation¹⁹. NI Direct's guidance on low carbon heating treats the certificate as the starting point: looking at it is a good starting point to help improve the energy efficiency of a property⁴⁰.

A certificate also gives information about the energy efficiency of a property, its heating source, estimated carbon emissions and estimated energy cost⁴¹. For a landlord facing a future band C standard, the report is the cheapest available survey of what the building needs and in what order.

Scottish building standards guidance on improving energy performance in conversions lists the alternative measures available where fabric work is constrained: heating system improvements, lighting system improvements, and the incorporation of renewable heating or on-site generation of heat or power⁴². That list is a reasonable map of the options where a solid-walled or traditional property cannot easily be insulated further. Which measures move a rating furthest is covered on energy improvements in flats and asking a landlord for energy improvements.

Awaab's Law: damp, mould and repair timescales in the social sector

From October 2025, Awaab's Law requires social landlords to investigate and resolve damp and mould in homes within set time periods⁹. It is, at that point, a duty on social landlords in England rather than on private landlords, and the obligation is framed as investigation and resolution within a defined window rather than as a general standard of repair.

The direction of travel is expansion rather than retreat. Phase 2 comes into effect on 30 November 2026, widening the hazards covered and applying the same immediate response times to electrical faults, risks of falling, structural defects, excess cold and heat, fire risks and pest infestations⁴³. In 2027, Phase 3 brings all remaining hazards under the Housing Health and Safety Rating System that present a significant risk of harm into scope, except overcrowding⁴⁴.

For private tenants, the practical question is which duty applies instead, and that is answered by the fitness and repairing regimes of each nation. The deadlines, the evidence a tenant can gather, and what happens when a report is ignored are set out on damp and mould in rented homes, and the underlying hazard framework on the Housing Health and Safety Rating System.

Where the rules differ across the four nations

The certificate duty exists everywhere, but the standards, the enforcement bodies and the reform timetables diverge.

In Scotland, the certificate must be available for issue to all prospective tenants and provided to a new tenant free of charge²⁴. Scottish policy sits within the Heat in Buildings Strategy, which focuses on energy demand for space and water heating in homes, workplaces and community buildings⁴⁶, and certificate reform there was advised by the Climate Change Committee⁴⁷.

In Northern Ireland, the duty under the Energy Performance of Buildings Regulations applies where a building is to be sold or rented out, requiring the relevant person to make available a valid certificate free of charge to any prospective buyer or tenant at the earliest opportunity and before contract³⁵. The owner or landlord must have a certificate, make it available, and give a copy to the new owner on sale¹⁹.

Support schemes are not uniform either. The Energy Company Obligation runs in England, Scotland and Wales³¹. National Energy Action offers advice and support across England, Wales and Northern Ireland⁴⁸. The electric vehicle chargepoint grant for residential landlords covers property in England, Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland⁴⁹. Heat network consumers in England and Wales living in properties covered by section 20B of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 are not covered by the twelve month back-billing limit¹⁴; such consumers should also contact the Housing Regulator, Regulator of Social Housing, LEASE and the First Tier Tribunal¹⁵.

There is one point the documents do not settle. On the Scottish private rented standard, one consultation records band E for domestic private rented property affecting new tenancies from 1 April 2020 and all tenancies from 31 March 2022, while another records that from 1 April 2022 the landlord must not let unless the certificate is a minimum of D. Those figures disagree and the conflict is unresolved.

Changes ahead: a proposed band C minimum and EPC reform

Two reforms are moving together: a higher minimum standard, and a rebuilt certificate behind it.

On the standard, the UK Government has proposed raising the minimum for domestic private rented properties to band C by 2030³. Published proposals cover private and social rented homes meeting EPC C by 2030⁹, with the stated aim of preventing landlords from renting out homes under an EPC rating of C or equivalent from 2030⁵⁰. The Clean Flexibility Roadmap states that from 1 October 2030 landlords will be required to ensure their properties meet a minimum score of EPC C against the fabric performance metric and either the heating system or smart readiness metric⁷. Under current proposals, all private rented properties in England and Wales would need to reach band C by 1 October 2030 or hold a valid exemption⁵¹. A 2025 consultation would allow properties with a current EPC C to be recognised as compliant under the future standard until the certificate expires⁵².

Scotland's earlier strategy set out requiring all private rented sector properties to reach a minimum standard equivalent to EPC C by 2028 where technically feasible and cost-effective at change of tenancy, with a backstop of 2028 for all remaining existing properties⁵³. The draft Scottish regulations define the minimum level of energy efficiency as a heat retention rating of C⁸.

On the certificate itself, Scotland has announced a new rating system for domestic buildings giving clearer information on the fabric energy efficiency of a property, the emissions, efficiency and running costs of its heating system, and the cost of energy to run the home to standardised conditions⁵⁴. Reforms to the Energy Performance of Buildings regime will replace the single efficiency score with four headline metrics from the second half of 2027⁵¹. Scottish reform plans derive from the Heat in Buildings Strategy, as advised by the Climate Change Committee⁴⁷.

Scottish legislation in draft also looks beyond individual homes: a Heat in Buildings Bill would require occupiers of non-domestic properties to provide information about unused heat on their premises on request and in confidence, and potentially require buildings with unused heat to supply it to a local heat network where cost-effective⁵⁵. Zone regulations may make provision for zone co-ordinators, heat network zone requirements, delivery of district heat networks, information requirements, enforcement, penalties and fees⁵⁶.

Penalties, exemptions and enforcement

Landlords have a legal obligation to comply with the certificate rules and could be subject to a fine if they do not²⁴. In England and Wales, the private rented sector energy standards exemptions register lists properties with registered exemptions and those issued penalties for failing to comply with these standards⁵⁷. That register is public, which means a registered exemption is visible and an unregistered failure is discoverable.

Exemptions are time-limited and conditional rather than permanent escapes:

• Recently becoming a landlord: after six months the temporary exemption expires and the landlord must either have improved the property to at least band E, or have registered another valid exemption where one applies, if they intend to continue letting⁵⁸.
• High cost: after expiry the landlord must try again to improve the rating to meet the minimum level of energy efficiency, and if this still cannot be achieved a further exemption may be registered⁵⁸.
• Third party consent: available where consent for a relevant energy efficiency measure was required and sought, and was refused, or granted subject to a condition the landlord was not reasonably able to comply with⁵⁸.
• Property devaluation: the landlord will still be required to install any relevant improvements recommended for the property that are not covered by the surveyor's report, unless another exemption applies⁵⁸.

The legislation frames the consent exemption in terms of a five year lookback: the relevant regulation does not apply at any time when the landlord has, within the preceding five years, been unable to raise the energy performance indicator to not less than the minimum level of energy efficiency as a result of the tenant refusing consent to a relevant improvement, or third party consent being refused or granted subject to a condition the landlord cannot reasonably comply with⁵⁹. Where a freeholder or management company is the obstacle, leasehold consent for energy work covers the route.

In Scotland, the draft regulations give local authorities the enforcement and compliance duties⁶⁰, with powers to serve a compliance notice and a penalty notice for individual acts of non-compliance, including financial penalties, a publication penalty or both, subject to an appeals process⁶⁰. Under the Heat in Buildings Standard proposals, private landlords would be subject to civil penalties if they do not meet the minimum energy efficiency standard after 2028⁶¹. The calculation methodology underpinning certificates in England and Wales is administered through a notice of approval by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities⁶².

What these duties do, and do not do, for a household's independence

The duties described here set a floor under the building a tenant lives in, and that floor is the main determinant of how much energy the household must buy. A band E property that is lifted to band C consumes less to reach the same temperature, and the recommendations report names the measures that would get it there. Nothing in the regime, however, gives the household control: the fabric, the heating system and the decision to install solar or a heat pump remain the landlord's, with the tenant's practical options limited to appliances and behaviour, as set out on renting and home energy and energy independence when you rent.

Dependence also persists in three other directions. The household still buys from an energy supplier, which is responsible for providing energy to homes and businesses⁶³. Where heat comes from a network controlled by the landlord, the household cannot switch supplier at all, and protection runs through authorisation conditions and housing legislation rather than through the retail market¹³. And the standard itself is a moving political target: the band C requirement is proposed, the certificate methodology is being rebuilt for the second half of 2027⁵¹, and the Scottish figures for the private rented standard are not consistent across the published consultations. A landlord planning work, and a tenant judging what to ask for, are both working against a standard that has not yet settled.