Commercial Buildings Insurance Holders may be required to display credentials

Those who hold Commercial buildings insurance policies may be required to advertise how eco friendly shops and offices are under new plans being considered by the government.

The British Property Federation (BPF), which represents landlords, has been campaigning for a consultation on the display energy certificates (DEC), which displays how much energy shops and commercial buildings use.

January 19th 2010, the government committed to consult on the issue, with ministers responding to the Committee on Climate Change's First Progress Report saying that DECs should be introduced to give people a better understanding of carbon emissions.

Currently, the certificates are only required for public buildings over a certain size.

"It is vital that we motivate both owners and occupiers to use buildings effectively. Building up energy performance data on buildings would allow us to easily benchmark and compare properties," said Patrick Brown, assistant director for sustainability at the BPF.

In 2009, the British Property Federation, along with the National Landlords Association and the Residential Landlords Association, overturned proposals to make commercial buildings insurance policyholders automatically liable for tenants' unpaid bills.