FLAT ABOVE THE SHOP - SHOULD IT HAVE A COMMERCIAL EPC OR A DOMESTIC EPC?

Which type of EPC is required when you have a shop or other commercial premises which also include living accommodation?

To answer this question we need to address two others first.....

Is it a dwelling?

To be classed as a dwelling the accommodation needs to be 'self contained' which requires that 'behind its own front door' the accommodations include facilities for cooking, washing, bathing, toilet, sitting, eating and sleeping. In other words, all of the usual domestic activities to provide a home to one household, be that one person or a family unit.

If any of these activities rely upon use of shared facilities which are part of the commercial premises, then it is not a 'self contained dwelling' and as such would NOT require a separate EPC. In this scenario the accommodation should be assessed as part of the commercial premises in the usual way, their activities being identified from the residential options within the commercial processing software (SBEM).

Is the accommodation only accessible through the commercial areas?

If the accommodation does meet the criterion of being a self contained dwelling then the second question to be addressed is the access to the accommodation. If it is only accessible through the commercial premises then the accommodation could reasonably be expected to only be suitable for occupation by someone who owns or works for the business that operates from the commercial parts. Again, the accommodation should be assessed as part of the commercial premises in the usual way, their activities being identified from the residential options within the commercial processing software (SBEM).

If the accommodation is a self contained dwelling and does have its own direct access from the outside, then the accommodations should be assessed as a dwelling using the domestic processing software (RdSAP) with the commercial parts of the property assessed using the SBEM methodology. The result is therefore two EPC's, one commercial and one domestic.