Liquid Gas UK (LGUK), the trade association for the LPG industry in the UK has called on the government to revise the methodology for Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs).
It said current methods encourage off the gas grid property owners to choose higher carbon heating solutions, such as heating oil, over more energy efficient options, such as LPG or heat pumps.
LGUK called for the UK government to address this when it publishes an EPC Action Plan later this year. It was however worried that UK government strategy could seek to follow the Scottish government in proposing a minimum EPC standard to buy or sell a home.
“If so, off-grid rural homeowners risk paying more and making choices that are less sustainable,” a statement said.
George Webb, chief executive of LGUK, added: “If the government is serious about hitting net-zero it is important that it looks at the challenge as a whole, and not solely focus on the energy that the UK consumes. Fixing the EPC methodology and levelling the playing field is a quick win. Removing the cost element from the methodology will help off-grid homeowners and landlords achieve a more accurate EPC rating, guiding them to make the right decisions when looking to improve the energy efficiency of their homes.
“No other European country includes input fuel costs as part of their methodology. By simply removing the input fuel cost, we can encourage off-grid homeowners to move away from heating oil in favour of fuels and technologies that are cleaner, such as LPG and bioLPG which sets them up for a hassle-free transition to net zero.”