Choosing an accreditation scheme as a Domestic Energy Assessor (DEA) or as a Non Domestic Energy Assessor (NDEA) is an important step, but not quite as important as choosing the right one. There are many different schemes out there with different rates, different focuses and different strengths. How do you go about choosing the right one for you so that you can lodge your Energy Performance Certificates (EPC) correctly and with peace of mind?<\/p>\n
Even with the changes in the current regulations strengthening quality there are a lot of accrediting bodies out there in the market. Some are long established in the energy sector, others have recently diversified into the sector, some will have even won awards, but all of them have been approved by the relevant government bodies.<\/p>\n
The most important starting point for anyone looking for an accreditation body is research. It takes time but it is important to do it correctly. If you find a scheme that you are interested in go look at the company website and read around. Find out what they do and what their background is. Check what they have to say and how they can help you.<\/p>\n
What they can do for you is the key point of choosing an accreditation body. Obviously you want one that complies with the quality regulations and you have to be part of one to be in the industry, but you should find the one that is focussed around what you want.<\/p>\n
This is the next step; to identify what you are interested in. Most of the accrediting bodies will offer training and training courses, being a member should entitle you to discount. Others offer dedicated technical advice and help. Others front end software functionality that will help to get more from undertaking EPCs<\/a>, especially those who are involved in Non Domestic EPCs.<\/p>\n When you are doing your research into a potential accreditation body don\u2019t limit yourself to just reading the company website and their literature. There are several industry professional bodies that encourage DEAs to join, whilst not accreditation schemes, these can be great places to find out more information on the accreditation bodies you are looking at. See what other energy assessors have to say and which bodies they rate, but always remember everyone has their own opinions. You might even find that your research leads you to other potential schemes you hadn\u2019t even heard of.<\/p>\n Some accreditation bodies run special offers designed to get you to sign up. Sometimes this is reduced lodgement fees, or other such bonuses. These offers are fine, but make sure that you read the small print and are aware of what will happen when the free period expires, or the cost commitments that might be ongoing. Equally be sure that you know what is expected of you to qualify for these deals, such as minimum level of EPC lodgements over a period of time.<\/p>\n Check to see how flexible your potential accreditation body is. Do they offer to include Professional Indemnity and Public Liability insurances per lodgement? Do they give you the option not to have these insurances as long as you have a main policy yourself? How about annual renewal fees? Or perhaps access to Continuous Professional Development (CPD) training?<\/p>\n Here\u2019s a final thought. Don\u2019t think you have to lump all your accreditation into one scheme, most are free to join, so try them out over a period of time. You might find a preference or even a scheme you use for one product and a scheme you use for others. You might also find you are encouraged to join a particular scheme by a supplier or panel. Multiple accreditations are a common factor in the industry but in the end it\u2019s about what is right for you.<\/p>\n Choosing an accreditation body is not a matter of just picking a random name, especially not if you want to make the right choice for you. Before you came into the industry you undertook research into the training and becoming an assessor, so take the right care when you come to choose an accreditation body. Remember, you\u2019ll probably be with them for a long time, so make sure they are right for you. Work out what you want, what you need and you\u2019ll find the right one for you.<\/p>\n Written by Symon Silvester<\/a> of SAS EPC Limited. <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Choosing an accreditation scheme as a Domestic Energy Assessor (DEA) or as a Non Domestic Energy Assessor (NDEA) is an important step, but not quite as important as choosing the right one. There are many different schemes out there with different rates, different focuses and different strengths. How do you go about choosing the right […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[256,83],"tags":[86,85,84,87,88],"class_list":["post-364","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-energy-performance-certificates","category-energy-professionals","tag-dea","tag-energy-assessments","tag-epc","tag-ndea","tag-sap-assessor"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.housingenergyadvisor.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/364"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.housingenergyadvisor.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.housingenergyadvisor.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.housingenergyadvisor.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.housingenergyadvisor.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=364"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/www.housingenergyadvisor.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/364\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":372,"href":"https:\/\/www.housingenergyadvisor.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/364\/revisions\/372"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.housingenergyadvisor.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=364"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.housingenergyadvisor.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=364"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.housingenergyadvisor.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=364"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}