Buy to let landlords and letting agents must provide an energy performance certificate (EPC) no longer than 28 days after a home is advertised to let.
But, according to figures from the Communities and Local Government Department (CLG), only a quarter of landlords have EPCs for properties waiting for tenants.
This compares with 95% of homes put for sale by their owners and 75% of social housing.
10:10, an environmental improvement group, claims the CLG is not doing enough to punish landlords and letting agents who flout the law.
The punishment is a £200 fine. If the property still has no EPC after six months, enforcement action can be started against the owner.
However, the CLG claims the data is not reliable and attached a warning to 10:10’s freedom of information request.
“The figures are not quality assured in the normal manner of government statistics. We are therefore unable to confirm the accuracy of the data or if the figures are statistically sound,” said a CLG spokesman.
The figures come from data held on the EPC Register, the English Housing Survey and an estimate of how many private rental properties change tenants.
Dave Timms, acting executive director of 10:10 claimed the CLG was “doing little to enforce the law on EPCs. Moreover, it has only a rough idea of how many estate agents are complying, and seems complacent about the widespread flouting of the rules.”
The EPC tells tenants see the cost of heating their home and what work needs doing to improve energy efficiency.
“Although the rules have been in place for nine months now, the department didn't provide evidence to back up their claim. This shows just how little effort they're making to enforcing measures which can help households and businesses cut their carbon emissions and save money,” said 10:10.
