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Larken & Co are delighted to welcome Luke Tattersall-Smith to the team. Luke specialises in commercial property transactions, acting in freehold and leasehold sales and purchases, lease grants & renewals, site acquisition and disposal, strategic land contracts and related commercial finance/ securitisation. He has experience in acting for a range of clients, from property developers and house builders to a variety of private clients, charities and farm partnerships.

“ Luke is a highly skilled lawyer, and we are pleased to welcome him. This is an important appointment for us in our plans for continuing the development of our services to businesses and the public, “said Denise Ryan, Senior Partner.

Luke has specialised in property matters for many years, both for landlords and tenants. Here he considers the new Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (commonly known as MEES) which comes into force from 1 April 2023, and its impact on commercial landlords.

“ MEES has applied to the granting of new leases and lease renewals since April 2018 but had not applied to leases already in existence before that date “, said Luke. “ However, from 1 April 2023, landlords will be in breach of the new MEES requirements by continuing to let a commercial property where it has an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating of E or below unless they can show that they have made and implemented all possible cost-effective energy efficiency improvements to their property as prescribed by the new standards. Such improvements include the installation of double-glazing, solar panels, or upgraded insulation to walls and pipework.”

EPCs are determined by accredited assessors who measure various aspects of a building’s energy efficiency to get an end score, which translates to a grade. A score of 0 – 25 is an A, while a score of 150 or more is a G. From 1 April, commercial buildings that do not have an EPC rating of E or above will not be able to be traded or leased. Current Government legislation intends to go even further and increase the rating to C in 2027 and B in 2030 to help the Government’s ambition to reach ‘net zero’ emissions by 2050.

There are certain circumstances in which an EPC may not be required, for example, where the property is a listed building or situated in a conservation area or where compliance with MEES would unacceptably alter the characterful appearance of a property. There are also exemptions where a building is used as a place of worship and for religious activities, with exemptions also applying to certain non-residential agricultural buildings such as barns or stables that have a low energy demand. Most exemptions last for only five years, although they can be claimed more than once if the owner can provide suitable documentary evidence.

Landlords looking to acquire a tenanted commercial property must carry out careful due diligence and instruct a surveyor to inspect a building’s condition to ensure compliance is met. Landlords acquiring a tenanted property after 1 April 2023 falling short of the new MEES requirements will be afforded a temporary 6-month window to bring a property up to standard. In practice, this does not afford landlords much time to comply. With the expansion of MEES regulations, landlords must consider acting now to carry out such improvement works to their existing portfolio. But who will pay? Landlords must consider whether it is appropriate for them to bear such costs or whether their lease might allow them to pass them on to or share them with their tenants and occupiers.

For commercial landlords this year, this could mean that rental income is under threat if their building’s EPC ratings are not improved. Not only will these properties not be able to be leased, but owners will also face a fine of approximately 12.5% of the property’s rateable value if they fail to meet the minimum requirements.

“There’s no doubt these changes will shake up the lettings industry, “said Luke. “By landlords taking a proactive approach now to review their existing portfolio and upgrade EPC ratings, this will not only enable properties to continue to be leased and traded post-April but also set the industry up for the more challenging legislative updates in 2027, 2030 and beyond.”

For further information about MEES or any other commercial property issue, please call Luke at Larken & Co on 01636 703333 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.