Stop low cost diagnostics: the Chamber of Real Estate Diagnosticians of the FNAIM responds to UFC-Que Choisir

Even if it remains an estimate of the energy performance and not a thermal study, the DPE must benefit from complete confidence. The issues related to the energy label have become far too important. It is up to the DPE to say today whether a landlord has the right to increase his rent; it is also up to him, tomorrow, to say if a dwelling can still be rented.

More UFC-Que Choisir errs in blaming only the diagnostician. The method has been revised, but it is still not perfect. It will probably never be, even if a colossal amount of work has been provided since July 2021, and even if this project continues to standardize practices, trace the inconsistencies encountered in the field, harmonize software... CDI-FNAIM watching over it, it is the very credibility of the profession that is at stake. Improving ECD is a permanent project, it is like housing, it is constantly evolving.

Yes, some recommendations suffer from inaccuracy and seem inappropriate. It goes without saying that these recommendations must be relevant: the CDI-FNAIM agrees. But the primary vocation of the DPE is to provide an energy balance, a mission fully fulfilled. 2,5 million DPEs carried out since July 2021 (nearly 50.000 each week) have made it possible to refine the photograph of the French real estate stock like never before. Strangely, no one questions this photograph. The recommendations made in the diagnosis are mere suggestions, and certainly not a roadmap. That is the work of the energy audit which will soon be required for the energy colanders put up for sale. Let's not mix everything.

Ambitions & challenges of the real estate diagnosis sector

The diagnostic sector has become considerably more professional for more than 20 years, and the profession of diagnostician continues year after year to gain in skills. But in this profession where prices are not regulated, competitive play can do damage. As elsewhere. Fortunately, these low cost operators who tarnish the image of our sector are less and less numerous every year. The vast majority of diagnosticians today have fully understood the issues related to diagnostics, and do not agree to sell off their services.

To improve ECD, UFC-Que Choisir proposes to strengthen the training of diagnosticians. We are in favor of it. But not in any way because it's not one or two days of additional training that will avoid other storms in the future.

The site must be more ambitious than a simple sprinkling with initial training that really prepares for the profession and not just for certification, continuous training that really guarantees an increase in skills. Among the solutions, the Chamber of diagnosticians of the FNAIM pleads in favor of learning.

The certification system also deserves reflection: does personal certification really guarantee the competence of operators? The Chamber of diagnosticians of the FNAIM wants a certification system more adapted to the sector for small and large companies: that diagnostic entrepreneurs now have the choice between company certification and personal certification. It is also time to build a real professional branch, and, why not, to think about an authority that could sanction the unscrupulous diagnosticians who tarnish the image of our sector.

Topics abound. One last thing comes to mind. And why should ECD prices not be regulated? The CDI FNAIM proposes to establish a floor price below which the DPE could not be sold in order to avoid the break in prices which inevitably leads to a deterioration in quality.

It would also have been instructive for UFC-Que Choisir in its last test to provide information on the prices charged and the duration spent in the field. Yes, a good ECD without approximation, with precise measurements, personalized recommendations, requires time, a lot of time. In terms of ECD too, quality has a price.