About BER

If you are going to sell residential property or rent it to a new tenant you will need a BER Cert.  It's the law.  An exception occurs in the case of listed buildings (for example some Georgian houses and certain other buildings subject to preservation orders). Your local county council maintains a list of "protected structures" and these are exempt because the owners may not be allowed to install common improvements such as PVC double-glazing or solar panels which would improve the energy rating.

Why was BER introduced? The BER Certificate makes transparent to prospective new owners or tenants the energy consumption and therefore the probable running costs of the building. The BER Cert also shows the typical carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from the building over the course of a year under standard conditions of use. The BER requirement was introduced in 2009 for all the EU countries. There is a similar requirement for small domestic appliances such as fridge/freezers to display an energy rating, and for new vehicles to disclose a standardised fuel consumption/ CO2 emissions figure. The consumer benefits in the long run by having such information publicly available.

In addition to providing the BER Certificate, the BER assessor also issues an  Advisory Report from SEAI which contains some standard advice on insulation and draught proofing.
Enrate also offers a personalised Recommendation Report specific to your property, which details the areas where deficiencies occur and suggests some possible cost-effective remedies.

 

BER Survey

Firstly, a survey of the property is arranged in order to gather all the information needed to produce the BER Certificate. Please allow up to two hours for the survey. Click here for more details. Following the survey (normally within 48hours) a BER Cert and an Advisory Report will be e-mailed out to the client.

BER Certificate

A printed copy of a BER cert is required to be given to each prospective purchaser or tenant at the offer stage when renting or selling property.
The figures on the BER Cert predict annual energy usage of the property, and the associated CO2 emissions.
The BER scale is divided into 15 categories, on a scale of A to G. The most energy efficient properties, having the lowest running costs, fall into the A1 bracket. These are likely to have state of the art heating systems, solar panels, and excellent insulation. They can be newly built properties, or sometimes older ones that have been upgraded.
The least energy efficient properties will fall into the G bracket, at the "red" end of the scale. These are older properties, and are likely to have little or no insulation, single glazed windows and inefficient heating systems. Although the owners will have saved money by not upgrading them over the years, their running costs will be significantly higher on an ongoing basis; by around €2000 per year for an average sized house. In most cases the occupier does not pay this amount in full, but simply endures colder, damper conditions to a greater or lesser extent.

An average rating for an older property would be an E or a D, depending on what basic improvements had taken place. Basic upgrades would be the installation of early versions of double glazing (with 6mm air gap between the panes, as opposed to the current versions with 20mm gas-filled gap and special glass coatings) or the addition of a basic wrap-around lagging jacket on a copper hot water cylinder, and some thickness of fibreglass attic insulation.

Progressively stricter Building Regulations were introduced in 1981, 1991, 1998, 2002, 2005 and 2011.  Properties built during these eras will have increased levels of energy efficiency built into them as standard, depending on how recent they are. They are likely to achieve grades in the C, D or E range.

There is no "pass" or "fail" in BER, and no minimum requirement for the rating.
There is another energy rating scale with a similar A to G format for all new fridge/freezers. The information is there so that the consumer can make an informed choice in regard to price v energy efficiency, without having to understand all the technical specifications.

 

Provisional BER Certificate
This is available for planning permission purposes. A BER assessor can calculate the projected certificate for a new build project "off the plans" using the supplied specifications and measurements. After the house is built, a site visit and survey is always necessary prior to issuing the full BER Certificate, which is required by law before first occupancy of the property.

Procedure
If we have received payment at the time of the survey, the BER Cert and advisory report will be emailed to you as a PDF file within one to two days following the survey. The original is held in an electronic format on a national database at Sustainable Energy Ireland (SEAI). You can forward the BER pdf file immediately to your estate agent or solicitor. They will print off as many paper copies as necessary or incorporate it into their promotional material.
 

Benefits of BER;

• For the builder: A good BER rating justifies the additional expense of installing higher grade insulation and more efficient heating systems, beyond the minimum requirements of the building regulations. Previously there was no incentive to do this as the final market price was not generally affected by these factors. This is one of the reasons the BER system was brought in. Additionally, a BER is necessary to verify that the build is fully in compliance with Part L of The Building Regulations.

• For landlords/vendors/estate agents: You are legally required to have a BER Certificate when placing a property on the market, and to present a printed copy to any prospective tenants or buyers viewing it. A good rating such as a B or C will enable you to achieve a better price. It will help you get payback for improvements and upgrades to your premises. However a poor BER cert could be a liability. Location will always be the primary factor in property dealings, but if there are two similar properties in the same area, the one with a better BER will attract more viewings, spend less time "on the market", and command a premium in terms of price. There are specific rules governing the way in which a BER is presented in an advertisement. To stay on the right side of the law, you must follow the correct procedure. You can download a free guide here; A Quick Summary of new BER Regulations (applying from Jan. 9th 2013)
   
• Tenants/purchasers: Although these are not directly involved in getting a BER they stand to benefit from the BER Cert. They can legally demand a copy of the BER Cert before viewing which will give them a good idea of the future running costs of the property. Previously each prospective purchaser/tenant would have had to commission their own separate survey to find out this information.
• For society: Reducing their CO2 footprint is a concern for many people. Irelands housing stock, which in the past was often constructed of poor quality materials (typically the hollow concrete block), will improve dramatically in the next few years due to new building regulations."Peak Oil" has already been reached, and the inevitable sharp price increases of energy triggered global financial crisis in 2007/2008. Even as less oil becomes available going into the future, demand continues to increase from China and other developing countries. As the "easier to reach" oil and gas supplies run out, prices will continue to rise. The European Union has acted to impose Building Energy Rating requirements across Europe. Individual governments are encouraging renewable energy installations and better energy efficiency through grants and stricter Building Regulations. Consequently, any house built in Ireland after 2008 must generate some of its own energy through renewables (e.g. solar panels) and have 40% better insulation than previously. This is a mandatory requirement of the 2008 Building Regulations. New gas or oil boilers must be the more efficient condensing type.The 2011 regulations introduced even higher standards of insulation. The intention of all this is to gradually reduce our consumption and importation of damaging fossil fuels while at the same time allowing the population to benefit from lower fuel bills. Elsewhere on this site you can find tips and useful information about upgrading (retrofitting) an older house.

How can I get a good BER Rating?

Download a BER Leaflet by SEAI