From the beginning of April they can request consent from their landlords to make energy saving improvements for the properties they rent and landlords will not be able to refuse their consent without good reason.
But tenants will need to ensure that they have a way of funding improvements at no cost to the landlord, unless otherwise agreed. This may prove difficult, as it was originally expected that the Green Deal, which was closed down in July last year, would provide much of the funding for this initiative.
Making these improvements can be beneficial to both tenants and landlords, saving on costs and having a positive impact on the environment, according to the National Association of Landlords (NLA).
It pointed out that a property that is energy efficient can also be an attractive prospect for potential tenants. Indeed, according to a recent NLA survey some 35% of tenants said they considered the energy efficiency of a property to be an important factor when choosing a place to live.
‘We encourage all landlords to think about how they may benefit from making energy efficiency improvements, as many can be made with little or no upfront cost, and can have a positive impact on the lives of tenants, their lettings businesses, and the environment in general,’ said Richard Lambert, NLA chief executive officer.
‘Lower fuel bills and more comfort mean that tenants may be inclined to stay for longer, thus reducing void periods,’ he added.
He also pointed out that the NLA offers various ways for landlords to improve their property and has access to different Government funding incentives to provide financial support.
Under the rules landlords with properties to let which have an Energy Performance Rating (EPC) of less than 'E' will have to carry out works to improve the EPC to a rating of E or above, or face penalties of up to £4,000.
But there are some instances in which a landlord can refuse permission for improvements to be made, including another tenant having made a request within the preceding six months and the landlord complied or if the improvement is the same, or substantially the same, as one which the landlord proposed within the preceding six months but which the tenant refused or failed to respond to.
In addition, a landlord can make a counter proposal by putting forward alternative energy efficiency measures. If this happens, the tenant must consent to those works before they can be carried out.
Further measures will come into effect under The Energy Efficiency Regulations 2015 in 2018, when it will become unlawful to grant new tenancies with an EPC rating of less than E and in 2020 when this will apply to all residential tenancies, both new and existing.
