Peterborough private renters losing out having to pay much more for electricity and heating than social housing tenants

New figures from campaign group Generation Rent suggests that, as private renters homes are generally less energy efficient, it is costing them significantly more.

Generation Rent says private renters have put up with draughty homes for too long as lax regulations mean landlords can avoid making improvements.

Energy Performance Certificates provide information on the energy efficiency of a building, and are required when a property is built, sold or let.

Homes are rated from zero to 100, with a higher score reflecting more energy efficiency.

The median score for privately rented flats with a rating in Peterborough was 71 in 2018-19, compared to 74 for those rented by social landlords, Office for National Statistics data shows.

The median is a measure of the average which takes the middle of a range of figures, meaning it will not be skewed by exceptionally low or high ratings.

The estimated median energy cost – those for lighting, heating and hot water – for private renters was £558 a year, much more than the £419.50 for social rented flats.

The figures do not cover all homes in the area, only those with a known EPC rating – the ONS estimates that 68 per cent had a certificate at the end of March last year.

For privately rented houses the median EPC score was 66, while it was 73 for social renters.

Median energy bills came in at £772 and £552 respectively – a difference of £220 in favour of social housing renters.

Peterborough mirrored the national picture – the median score across England was 68 for private rent flats compared to 73 for social rent, with bills at £567 and £461 respectively.

For houses it was 63 (£849) for private rental and 68 (£667) for social lets.

Dan Wilson Craw, director of Generation Rent, said: “Private renters have had to put up with draughty homes for far too long, because there hasn’t been much of a carrot or a stick for landlords to insulate their properties.

“Even with recent Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards, landlords get an exemption if it would cost too much to make the necessary improvements.”

He said the recently announced Green Homes Grant, whereby homeowners – including landlords – can get financial help to make energy efficiency upgrades, was an opportunity to make thousands of rented homes more comfortable.

The Government will pay vouchers of up to £5,000 – or £10,000 for some low-earners – to cover up to two-thirds of the cost of work done by approved tradespeople.

“But the Government hasn’t told us how it will make sure the money goes to people who need it most,” Mr Wilson Craw added.

A Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government spokesman said new homes of all types are significantly more energy efficient than most older housing.

He added: “We are improving the quality of housing across the country by ensuring new homes adhere to strict energy efficiency standards, giving councils powers to deal with dangerous damp in privately rented homes, and enabling renters to take landlords who fail to provide decent living conditions to court.

“We’ve also introduced Green Homes Grants, worth up to £10,000, to help cover energy efficiency improvements, meaning hundreds of thousands of homes will be warmer and safer this winter.”

Using powers under the Home Energy Conservation Act 1995, the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change requires all English local authorities to have prepared a report setting out the energy conservation measures that the authority considers practicable, cost effective and likely to result in significant improvement in the energy efficiency of residential accommodation in its area.

Peterborough City Council submits update reports at two yearly intervals.

The Act recognises the key role local authorities play in improving energy efficiency of the residential accommodation in their area.

The Energy Company Obligation (ECO) requires large energy companies to help improve the energy efficiency of domestic homes by discounting the cost of improvement works. This applies to certain households who are struggling to pay their energy bills and are defined as being in fuel poverty. The Government has now given local authorities the ability to identify vulnerable households in their areas which could benefit from these improvements. The new scheme is called ECO Flexible Eligibility.

Peterborough City and Rutland County Councils have jointly published criteria, enabling them to identify households that would benefit from such improvements under ECO flex. Improvements are often fully funded where the household meets particular criteria and is at risk of fuel poverty.

The council states that since April 2016, a tenant has been able to request consent to energy efficiency measures form their landlord and the Energy Act 2011 sets a minium energy efficiency standard. This is an E EPC rating in the private rented sector. From April this year, the regulations apply to all private rented sector property and enforcement actions have been taken against landlords without a valid EPC.

The authority has arranged deals with low cost energy suppliers to get tenants in fuel poverty on a better energy rate, including the offer to help larger groups to switch collectively to gain a lower price. They have also offered energy-saving advice with the Peterborough Environment City Trust, recommended the Warm Home Discount for eligible residents on benefits, generally helping households save around £174 on their bills.

The council has also spent hundreds of thousands on helping to repair or replace boilers and central heating in low income and vulnerable households, as well as insulating the walls of Park homes and older properties with the help of government Green Deal funding.