CLG criticised over Hips

Tuesday 8th January, 2008

A parliamentary committee has lambasted the Communities and Local Government (CLG) department for errors it made in its rollout of home information packs (Hips).

The committee's report criticised CLG for delaying the introduction of Hips and for weakening the documents by not making home condition reports (HCRs) mandatory, as well as for failing to engage industry stakeholders in their implementation.

It said it would have to see the relevant data before it could judge whether Hips had sped up the home-buying process, but deemed that the distorting effect their launch had on the market was minor and therefore insufficient excuse for delaying their introduction.

Commenting on these findings, the Association of Hip Providers agreed that these documents were not rolled out quickly enough, but vowed to continue working with the government on improving these packs, including making HCRs compulsory.

Yet while Peter Bolton King from the National Association of estate agents also agreed with many of the committee's censures, he also reiterated his organisation's hostile stance towards Hips, describing them as detrimental to the property market and to consumers.