Quality Assurance

Quality Assurance of Building Energy Certificates in England and Wales

For non-domestic energy assessments in England and Wales MHCLG has issued revised Scheme Operating Requirements (SORs) for producers of Energy Performance Certificates, Display Energy Certificates and Air Conditioning Inspectors. These requirements, effective from 1 July 2019, are to be implemented by ALL Energy Assessor Schemes to ensure and maintain consistency.

For further information on the SORs, please click here.

  • All assessors must sign the CIBSE Certification Code of Conduct, which also describes actions all schemes must take if Code of Conduct failures are revealed during QA activity.
  • All assessors must declare complaints received from customers and others to the Scheme or Schemes, who will be obliged to investigate.
  • A minimum of 2% of all EPCs (excluding L5 EPCs – see L5 SOR), DECs and ACIRs will be randomly selected for audit.
  • Assessors must provide the information requested within 3 working weeks of the request or have a clear reason for not complying with the request. Any energy assessor who fails to provide complete information will be suspended by their scheme.
  • Any audit failures i.e. not within the 5% or 10% error boundaries will automatically trigger a requirement for the assessor to withdraw the faulty certificate from the register and to re-lodge a corrected version. It will also trigger a request for a further certificate to be submitted for a targeted audit. There will be a charge for each additional QA check required subject, within reason, to the level of complexity.
  • If the additional certificates fails its QA checks the energy assessor will be suspended and asked to complete further training or any other corrective action.
  • MHCLG requires that every energy assessor must have Public Liability Insurance (PLI) as well as Professional Indemnity Insurance (PII) cover.  Please see the table below for the requirements for each strand.
  • Strand Professional Indemnity  Public Liability 
    DEC £100,000 for each claim £1,000,000 per claim
    EPC3/4 £250,000 for each claim £1,000,000 per claim 
    EPC 5 £250,000 for each claim £1,000,000 per claim
    Air Conditioning Inspection L3 £50,000 for each claim £1,000,000 per claim
    Air Conditioning Inspection L4 £500,000 for each claim £1,000,000 per claim
  • Energy Assessor Schemes are also required to impose additional QA audits for other reasons including, excessive use of helpdesks, complaints from clients, high lodgements or "where a scheme forms a view, for whatever reason, that a particular energy assessor may be at high risk of providing an erroneous certificate, the auditing of an energy assessor's work should be brought forward to the next available certificate, and depending on the level of risk the sampling rate of that persons work should be increased".
  • Energy Assessors can be suspended or removed from the scheme at anytime for failing a QA audit typically for not supplying requested audit information, transgression of the code of conduct, failing to replace an EPC, DEC, Advisory/Recommendation report or ACIR when requested to do so, or as the result of an upheld complaint, in such cases the notice of suspension or removal from a scheme is required to be sent to all other scheme operators and MHCLG.

Quality Assurance of Building Energy Certificates in Scotland

For Non Domestic energy assessments in Scotland, the Scottish Government has issued the Operating Framework of Approved Organisations for companies operating energy assessor schemes like CIBSE Certification who run a register for assessors in Scotland. These requirements are to be implemented by ALL Energy Assessor Schemes with registers covering energy assessments in Scotland to ensure and maintain consistency.

Summary of recommended evidence for QA audits

Summary of recommended evidence for QA audits of EPCs

Existing Buildings
Data file and/or software data collection forms, relating to information used by Energy Assessors to calculate an EPC, which allows Scheme QA assessors to assess the accuracy of the EPC against each stage of data entry associated with SBEM or the DSM
Design Floor plan, elevations, sections etc which allows the EPC to be recalculated.
Site notes - paper or electronic file

Recommended photographic and documentary evidence for existing premises (where practical) 

  • Ariel view of building from Google maps or similar that clearly identifies the building and site layout to confirm orientation
  • Evidence in support of activities stipulated within zones
  • All external elevations: front, rear and side(s)
  • Construction - i.e. cavity or solid wall with presence or not of insulation, all different types covered
  • Glazing types, including the g-value (EN ISO 410)
  • And shading
  • Roof construction and roof lights
  • For each HVAC system depending on the system type: 'effective heat generator seasonal efficiency', Generator Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio (SEER) and generator Nominal Energy Efficiency Ratio (EER), chiller and generator type, heat recovery system, presence of fans and pumps along with pump power and/or SFP, fuel type and controls (including HVAC manufacturer/make model numbers and any third party evidence of calculations).
  • Heat/cool emitters within zone/areas
  • Controls within zone/areas
  • Lighting within zones and controls
  • Evidence of LZC technologies and relevant data
  • Sub-metering
  • Power factor correction
  • Accredited details
  • Any other key feature of the building or limitation whose presence or absence may affect the EPC rating or which would be required to support any claim made in the report that could be subsequently queried or be the subject of a complaint

Supplementary calculations undertaken by the assessor
Any other evidence required to justify the suppression or inclusion of additional recommendations

Newly Constructed Building other than a Dwelling
Data file, and/or software data collection forms, relating to information used by an Energy Assessor to calculate an EPC, which allows Scheme QA assessors to assess the accuracy of the EPC against each stage of data entry associated with SBEM or the DSM.  The information must allow the Scheme to deduce the software (and version) used to produce the EPC.
AS BUILT CHECKS (Newly Constructed only)
Evidence that the property has been built as per the design:
Details of any supplementary calculations undertaken by the assessor
Any other evidence required to justify the suppression or inclusion of additional recommendations.

Summary of recommended evidence for QA audits of DECs

Data file and/or OR Calc (or equivalent for other software) Data Collection forms relating to information used by a DEC assessor to calculate an OR, which allows the Scheme QA assessors to assess the accuracy of the DEC against each data entry associated with OR software.
Floor plan.
Site notes and other documentary evidence - paper or electronic file 

Recommended photographic and documentary evidence for existing premises (where accessible)

  • Aerial view of building from Google maps or similar that clearly identifies the building its orientation and site boundaries.
  • Evidence of LZC technologies.
  • Presence of metering and sub metering.
  • Any other key features of the building or limitation whose presence or absence may affect the OR rating or which would be required to support any claim made in the Advisory Report that could be subsequently queried or be the subject of a complaint.
  • Evidence required to justify the suppression or inclusion of standard recommendations in the Advisory Report.
  • Any other evidence required to justify the inclusion of a bespoke recommendation in the Advisory Report.
  • Other information to justify approach taken to DEC and Advisory Report production.

Summary of recommended evidence for QA audits of ACIRs

• Pdfs of your certificate and report

• The 2 xml files for the case (the project xml file and the lodged xml file)

• Site Notes, including anything used in the production of the report, for example:

      1. Confirming data input or decision making that cannot be substantiated by other sources of evidence
      2. Reflective thought, hand calculations, or amendments to recommendations (identifying building age, construction, assessing primary heating system etc), which is not provided through other sources of evidence Site notes should be signed and dated by the assessor.

• Contemporaneous schematics demonstrating AC systems in buildings. For Level 4 buildings these can be representative so long as they are produced to cover the full range of systems in use in the building

• Evidence of zoning shall be by way of an annotated drawing of the building identifying the zones if appropriate

• Photographic evidence of the site visit, the building construction and elements and the AC systems and components inspected. Photographs should be date stamped on the image of the photo.

• Names of any individuals who assisted the ACI in the preparation of the report (if any), and what their roles were. Confirmation that all were covered by appropriate insurance, risk assessment, and the EA can produce evidence that they meet relevant competence requirements.

• Arial view of building from Google maps or similar that clearly identifies the building and site layout to confirm orientation, or a hyperlink to the satellite view of the building.

• Evidence of zoning. This shall be by way of an annotated drawing of the building identifying the zones. In buildings with many zones, photographic evidence shall be provided to support zone classification, and system types.

• Supplementary calculations undertaken by the assessor (where applicable)

• Additional evidence required to justify the inclusion of recommendations.