THOUSANDS of landlords in Edinburgh are facing £500 fines if they fail to gain a new certificate showing how much their properties cost to heat.
EU rules introduced on Sunday mean that all landlords in the public and private sector have to provide new tenants with an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC), which grades a property on an A to G scale similar to the energy ratings used for fridges
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The move is designed to improve energy efficiency standards but it is thought only around 1000 rented homes in Edinburgh have been assessed.
Landlords face fines from the city council if they fail to provide prospective tenants with an EPC but, because of a surveying backlog, the date for introducing them has been put back to March 31.
It is estimated that around 6000 properties in Edinburgh will need to be assessed over the next three months alone because of the Capital's high turnover in rented flats.
The city council today said it was making good progress in assessing its own properties for the EPC but landlords said many in the industry were still not aware of the need for an EPC.
Jodie Wilson, technical energy services manager at Changeworks, one of the organisations carrying out the EPC assessments, said: "EPCs will revolutionise how people let and rent properties because they show how much they cost to heat.
"The good news is that certificates last ten years. They also set out a range of measures which could improve the property, many of which are grant fundable.
"We have received a flood of enquiries from landlords worried about missing the January EPC deadline. Our advice is don't panic yet because if you can book now you should avoid a fine, but you only have until March."
Commercial buildings also require EPCs and the city's biggest office development, Waverley Gate, was one of the first buildings to be assessed last year. It was assessed as a grade C rating – meaning it is within the UK's top 11 per cent of commercial buildings in terms of sustainability.
Colin Campbell, a director of Edinburgh Letting Solutions, has undergone the EPC training but today questioned how much notice tenants would take.
He said: "It remains to be seen what sort of leniency will be shown in terms of fines with this because there are still a lot of people still to address this issue.
"It is potentially useful if you are, say, looking at two similar flats and one costs £800 a year to heat and another costs £400. But there are other factors which I think are much more important to tenants such as location, rental price and the state of the common stair."
It is thought most properties in Edinburgh will only score a D or E rating because of the age of many buildings in the city.
A city council spokeswoman said: "The council is making progress to ensure that the March 31 deadline regarding energy efficiency certification for new tenancies is complied with. We are making every effort to raise awareness about this new legislation among Edinburgh landlords."
Once the rules come into force, city council community safety officers will investigate landlords who have failed to comply and will be able to issue £500 fines.
