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- Cork City & Surrounding Areas
- SEAI-Registered BER Assessors · Cork City & County
A Building Energy Rating, or BER, is an official measure of how much energy a property needs to run. It is a legal requirement when you sell or rent, and it belongs to the building rather than the owner. Here is what the certificate actually shows, who is allowed to issue one, and what the rating means in practice.
The rating
A BER rates a property from A0, the most efficient, down to G. Since 24 May 2026 the BER rating scale runs across eight bands instead of fifteen, and the same scale now applies to homes and commercial buildings. The rating reflects the building’s energy performance under standard assumptions about how it is occupied and heated, not the habits of the people living in it. Two identical houses receive the same rating, so buyers and tenants can compare like with like.
What you receive
Every completed assessment produces the same three things.
In plain English
Only an assessor registered with SEAI for the relevant category, and you can check any assessor on the register. Homes are assessed by a registered domestic assessor; non-domestic buildings need a separate registration. An assessment by anyone else cannot be published on the register.
The Dwelling Energy Assessment Procedure, SEAI’s official calculation method for homes. The assessor enters measured dimensions, construction, heating, controls and ventilation, and DEAP produces the rating. Assessors do not decide your rating, the software does.
Floor areas and dimensions, the construction of walls, roof and floors, window and door types, the heating system and its controls, hot water storage, ventilation, and any renewables such as solar panels or a heat pump.
No. The calculation uses standard occupancy and heating patterns so ratings stay comparable between properties. Turning the heating down will not improve your BER, and leaving it on will not damage it.
No. A BER assesses energy performance only. It is not a structural survey, a condition report or a valuation, and it says nothing about damp, subsidence or state of repair.
Next: Do you actually need one? · How to get one · What it costs
Yes, whenever a property is offered for sale or rent, and for new builds before they are occupied. The rating must also appear in the property advertisement.
It is the calculated energy use in kilowatt hours per square metre per year. A lower number is better, and it is what places a property in A0, A, B and so on down the eight-band scale.
Anyone. The national register is public and searchable, which is exactly why an accurate assessment matters.
If you believe something was recorded incorrectly, raise it with your assessor first. Genuine errors can be corrected and the certificate republished. SEAI also operates a complaints process.
Not if the existing certificate is still inside its ten-year validity and the property has not been materially altered. More on BER validity.
Murray BER is an SEAI-registered BER assessor in Cork, covering the city and county. Send the address and property type and Tom will come back with a fixed quote. Most certificates are published within two working days of the survey.
