Postpone Hips introduction says the CML

The implementation of Home Information Packs should be postponed until full evidence from research and the area trials are available, says the Council of Mortgage Lenders.

In its response to the latest Government consultation on Hips, the CML says this evidence is required before an informed decision on the effectiveness of the scheme can be made.

The CML says the Government has been slow to recognise the problems with local authority searches and the Hips timetable is increasingly lacking credibility as proposals for change are still being made less than four months before full implementation. CML head of policy Jackie Bennett says: "This close to the implementation date, there are still far too many unknowns about the potential market impacts. We call on the government to postpone the introduction of HIPs until they have been properly trialed and reviewed."