EPC Estimated Energy Costs - Comparable between properties?

Dear Comrades,

Please could someone who knows a lot about EPCs enlighten me?

I am looking at moving house and am considering a couple in particular. I am interested in the "estimated energy costs" section. I am quite confident that the EPC estimated energy costs are not accurate (owing to energy price changes etc), it is the accuracy of the difference between properties that interests me.

I looked at my current home (a semi detached) with an estimated "£980" yearly spend (EPC done 2 years ago), compared with my actual spend of £1,480 (last year). So the real cost is 50% more than stated on the EPC.

What I would like to know is, how accurate is the "estimated energy costs" section in comparable terms (between properties). For instance. My house energy cost is 50% more than EPC done in 2011. If I were to look at another different kind of house (say bungalow, flat or detached) and check the costs detailed in an EPC carried out in 2011, would I be able to add 50% to this and get a reasonable idea of cost with which to compare the two properties?

OR do EPC estimated energy cost differences between two separate properties bear no relation to real cost differences?

Would also appreciate it if you have your EPC to hand if you could tell me i) type of property, ii) estimated yearly energy cost and iii) actual yearly cost iv) date of EPC. This would give me an idea if the 50% uplift calculation has a foundation reality.

Many thanks

Oingo

An EPC is based upon a 2.4 family living in a house. They are also valid for 10 years so they may not always reflect the true energy efficiency of a property . Will depend on when it was done and if any energy saving measures have been put in place since the first one. I wouldn't use one as a guide to judging bills personally x

EPCs were foisted on the unwilling UK. I've never yet heard of, seen, or acted for any prospective purchaser or tenant to whom a 'poor' EPC result made a ha'porth of difference!

EPCs were foisted on the unwilling UK. I've never yet heard of, seen, or acted for any prospective purchaser or tenant to whom a 'poor' EPC result made a ha'porth of difference!

Presumably that's because the buyers who cared wouldn't have got that far, knowing the EPC result up front n'all.

But seriously- do prospective buyers/tenants ever care at all about EPCs?

But seriously- do prospective buyers/tenants ever care at all about EPCs?

Not a jot, in my case. All the EPC confirmed in my case was what i already knew from viewing the house - boiler was old & inefficient, there was no insulation in the loft or below the lounge floor, there was no cavity wall insulation as there are no cavities in the walls. I knew all those would need updating, a colourful wall chart pointing it out for me made no difference.

But seriously- do prospective buyers/tenants ever care at all about EPCs?

Presumably the OP does.

I agree though they aren't a good tool. For me I'd prefer an absolute rather than relative grading. A massive but efficient house might cost more than a small inefficient one, that's all you really need to know is the basic kwh or whatever. I think the measure of how good it could be is useful though, if not only to say whether a landlord has tried to upgrade at all, but probably a bit speculative.