Building Energy Rating (BER) Certificate in Ireland

Information on the Irish Building Energy Rating Certificate in Ireland

1. What is a Building Energy Rating?

The Building Energy Rating Certificate (BER) is part on the Energy Performance of Buildings EU Directive. The aim of the Directive is to make the energy performance of a building transparent and available to potential purchasers or tenants.

The BER is simply a check to see how good your house is at using energy and will measure how much energy and carbon your house will use or produce over a given year.

The certificate will most likely be similar to the energy label for domestic electrical appliances, which rates the energy performance of the appliance from A to G.

The BER will cover energy use for space heating, water heating, ventilation and lighting, calculated on the basis of standard occupancy and will be valid for 10 years from the date of its being issued

The certificate will be required at the point of sale or rental of a building, or on completion of a new building. At this time the BER is only a rating of a home's energy efficiency. The homeowner looking to sell or rent is under no obligation to make any recommended improvements.

The Building Energy Rating is an indication of the energy performance of a specific dwelling. It covers energy use for space heating, water heating, ventilation and lighting, calculated on the basis of standard occupancy. It is expressed as primary energy use per unit floor area per year. A Rated properties will tend to be the most energy efficient and will have the lowest energy bills.

2. Who needs a BER?

You are only required to have an energy rating carried out if you are selling or renting your house. Exemptions apply to listed buildings of outstanding architectural or historical importance.

3. How do you get a BER?

BERs will be carried out by specially trained BER assessors who will issue the BER by using various calculation methods and software.

The process of obtaining a BER
3.1 House Assessment
3.2 Issue of a Building Energy Rating Certificate
3.2 Issue of a Detailed Report
3.3 Issue of advisory report

3.1. House Assessment
The BER assessor will inspect the energy use for space heating, water heating, ventilation, lighting, materials used for construction and size, geometry and exposure of the building.

3.2. Issue of a Building Energy Rating Certificate
A building energy rating certificate will be issued after the BER has been carried out.
The certificate uses a coloured scale to how energy efficient the building is. The BER scale ranges from “A1” (most efficient) to “G” (least efficient).

3.3 Issue of a Detailed Report
The detailed report accompanies the BER certificate detailing whether or not the house is compliant in terms of energy efficiency.

3.4 Issue of advisory report
You will also be issued with an advisory report which will detail the steps you can take to improve the energy performance of your house.

4. How will energy rating of NEW HOMES be carried out?

New homes will most likely be rated off the plans during the design stage by a certified assessor. The person or organisation building the new dwelling will engage a BER assessor to carry out the BER.

5. How will energy rating of EXISTING HOMES be carried out?

Homeowners who are selling or renting an existing home will be required to have a building energy rating (BER) carried out by a trained and certified assessor and must provide the BER certificate to prospective buyers/tenants.

6. How much does a BER cost?

There is no set fee for a BER assessment . Early indications are that the cost in Ireland for domestic buildings will be approx. €300 + vat for an existing home and for a new home.
The exact amount of the BER fee will be determined by competition among BER assessors. For non-residential buildings the fees will vary according to whether the building is new or existing, and according to building size and complexity.

Assessors will be charged a fee of €25 to submit a BER assessment to SEI for publication on the National BER Register.

7. How long is a BER valid for?

A BER is valid for up to 10 years provided that there is no material change to the dwelling that could effect its energy performance.

8. What are the BER implementation dates in Ireland?

New Residential: Since 1st January 2007 all new residential buildings for which planning permission was applied will require a BER certificate when they are offered for sale or for rent. New Non-Residential: Since 1st of July 2008 BER certificates are required for all new non-residential buildings. Existing Buildings (residential and other buildings) when offered for sale or letting on or after 1st January 2009.

9. What information does the Building Energy Rating Certificate contain?

The BER Certificate provides information on the following:

The BER for the building The building name and address A BER Number The date of Issue The date until when the BER is valid The BER Assessor Number The BER Assessor Company Number

The rating assigned to the property is indicated on a scale from the most efficient (A1 rating) to the least efficient (G Rating)

For further information contact www.sei.ie/ber