If you’re getting ready to sell your home, an Energy Performance Certificate is one of the first things you’ll need in place. It’s a legal requirement, and it must be available to anyone viewing the property. An EPC lasts a long time once issued, so there’s a fair chance you already have a valid certificate from when you bought or last marketed the home.
Here’s everything you need to know about how long an EPC lasts, how to check yours, and what to do if it’s expired.
Related: Pricing your home to sell: Why the first figure matters most
What is an EPC?
An EPC, or Energy Performance Certificate, is a document that rates how energy efficient your property is. It grades your home on a scale from A to G, where A is the most efficient and G is the least. Alongside the rating, it estimates your energy costs and suggests improvements that could make the property more efficient.
You need a valid EPC before you can market your home for sale, and it must be available to prospective buyers from the point the property is advertised. It gives buyers a clear, standardised way to compare the energy efficiency of different properties, which matters more than ever as running costs stay front of mind.
How long is an EPC valid for?
An EPC is valid for 10 years from the date it’s issued. Once it’s logged on the official register, it stays valid for the full decade, even if you sell the property during that time.
That 10-year window is worth understanding properly. Your certificate covers multiple transactions, so if you bought your home a few years ago, the EPC from that purchase is very likely still valid now. You can sell on the same certificate more than once, as long as it hasn’t passed its expiry date. The only thing that replaces an EPC early is a newer one for the same property, which takes over on the register automatically.
It’s also worth knowing that renovations don’t cancel your EPC. If you’ve had work done, the certificate remains valid until its expiry date. That said, if you’ve made genuine improvements such as new insulation, glazing, or a more efficient heating system, you can choose to get a fresh EPC so the certificate reflects the property’s current, improved rating rather than its earlier one.
Related: Your home inspection checklist
How to check your EPC validity
Checking whether your EPC is still valid takes less than a minute, and it’s free. You can look up any property on the official government register at gov.uk/find-energy-certificate.
Enter your postcode, select your address from the list, and you’ll see both the issue date and the expiry date of the certificate. Open the full certificate and you can also view the rating, the estimated running costs, and the recommended improvements. If your property is in Scotland, there’s a separate Scottish EPC register to use instead.
If you can’t find a certificate for your address, it may be that the property has never had one, or that the details are listed slightly differently. Either way, your local branch can help you work out where you stand and arrange a new assessment if you need one.
What happens when an EPC expires?
Once an EPC passes its 10-year expiry date, it can no longer be used to market your property. The expiry date is fixed and doesn’t extend on its own, even if nothing about the property has changed and it hasn’t been sold in that time.
If your certificate has expired, you’ll need a new assessment before you can put your home on the market. An accredited domestic energy assessor visits the property, carries out the assessment, and lodges the new certificate on the register, usually appearing within a day or so. The assessment itself is straightforward and doesn’t take long.
There’s no penalty for simply holding an expired EPC while you live in your home. The requirement applies when you come to sell, so a practical approach is to check the expiry date early, before you plan to market the property. That way, if you do need a new one, there’s time to arrange it as part of your preparations.
Related: Guide to selling an inherited property in the UK
Your EPC questions, answered
Do I need a new EPC to sell my house?
Not necessarily. If your existing EPC is still within its 10-year validity, you can use it to market and sell your home. You only need a new one if the certificate has expired, or if there’s no EPC on record for the property.
How do I get a new EPC?
You book an accredited domestic energy assessor, who visits the property, carries out the assessment, and lodges the certificate on the national register. You can find an accredited assessor through the service on GOV.UK.
How long does an EPC assessment take?
The visit itself is usually fairly quick for a typical home, and the certificate normally appears on the register within a day or so of the assessment being completed.
Can I sell my house without an EPC?
You need a valid EPC in place to market your property for sale, and it must be available to prospective buyers once the home is advertised. Some properties, such as certain listed buildings, may be exempt, so it’s worth checking if you’re unsure.
Does a renovation affect my EPC?
Renovations don’t cancel your existing EPC, which stays valid until its expiry date. If you’ve made energy improvements, you can choose to get a new assessment, so the certificate reflects the property’s current rating.
Getting ready to sell
An EPC is one of the more straightforward parts of preparing to sell. Checking it early rather than at the last minute means you know exactly where you stand, and if you do need a new assessment, it’s easily arranged.
If you’re thinking about selling and want to check your EPC or arrange a new one, speak with your local Whitegates branch. We’re happy to help you get everything in place.
