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Home Information Packs scrapped

Thursday 20th May 2010
The Coalition Government today took the first step towards scrapping the controversial Home Information Packs (HIPs) required by house sellers.

HIPs were this morning suspended and will ultimately be outlawed.

They were first introduced in 2007 in England and Wales in a bid to speed up the house selling process by obliging sellers to provide much of the required conveyancing information when properties are first put up for sale.

Housing Minister Grant Shapps said this morning: "Today the new Government is ensuring that Home Information Packs are history.

"By suspending home information packs today, it means that home sellers will be able to get on with marketing their home without having to shell out hundreds of pounds up front.

"We are committed to greener housing so from now on all that will be required will be a simple energy performance certificate."

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Mike Jones

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(21) Comments | Report Abuse

Added by Hank on 2011-07-03 12:15:53

A million thanks for posting this infromatoin.

Added by bobby on 2010-06-09 04:57:03

paid hip on 20th may!am i intitel to refund

Added by Alan on 2010-05-21 01:47:15

Personally speaking I say " WELL DONE " This is the first right move Any Government has made.
I really have nothing to hide but Buying & Selling a property is a stressful enough preseager and expense without more of the same. Good riddance to HIPS, and thank heavens for a little bit of sanity.

Added by Dex on 2010-05-21 01:24:51

David,

I can't speak for all the prime ministers you mentioned but I know that John Major WON his election, which he had to call by law. Brown didn't win his and he STILL wanted to stay on knowing he'd been in power for 3 years WITHOUT a seal of approval from the electrets AND suffered a loss at the general election he too like Major had to call by law!! That’s the difference between Brown and Major. On the US front we do indeed here in the UK elect a party not a president, BUT the Prime minister has the FINAL say on things so it IS important that we have a say on the very person we actually trust with massive national and international decision they make which ultimately could effect our very existence on this planet! So are you telling others and me that EVERY person in the Labour government back in 2003 would have took us to war in Iraq? I'm sure if you found a person who wouldn't and made THEM prime minister we wouldn't had went to war. What I am getting at is a prime minister is the chief and leader of the party and their decision is what counts. Sure you might need to get it through parliament but with Labours majority back then that was just a formality! All in all I do vote for a party and it's manifesto, BUT at the same time I vote for a prime minster too as his or her influence being at the top so to speak is crucial.

Added by Athurian on 2010-05-21 08:46:30

Whatever the sympathy for trained HIP providers,
ALL Bureacracy makes a society LESS Efficient UNLESS it exists for a good reason. Sypathy to Scots, but YOU voted for 'Separation' [With its advantages, so dont 'Bleat' over downsides [not less costs]

Added by Doreen Dawson on 2010-05-20 07:56:36

I feel sorry for the people who have paid their own money to train as HIP assessors, with the promise of jobs.

Added by campbell on 2010-05-20 07:24:38

435 deferred payment for 9mth.just gon on market and gone into debt to get the hip just to market our property.surely we should not have to pay this....

Added by Cain on 2010-05-20 05:51:06

David, Congrats on completing your sale. It's always a shame when laws change so close to an interested chose in action, perhaps retrospectively to your detriment. Anyone who trades shares alot on here will share my sympathy ie Reuters,Directors dealings etc.. My argument was merely such that somebody who did their homework would know that this was going to happen and somebody selling such a large interest ought to do so. Please don't take it personally. It is only my opinion. Being a lawyer I guess I have an unfair advantage. Cheers

Added by David on 2010-05-20 05:39:35

I am neither ill advised or niave Cain Webber, I decided to sell knowing what my costs would be in doing so. To suggest that I should wait for a politicians promise to be fulfilled after an election is the best example of niavety I could possibly imagine.

Added by chris on 2010-05-20 05:36:12

You're lucky. In Scotland we are too keep this ridiculous system, despite it being ridiculed everywhere. I have seen these, they are useless and only last 12 weeks.
A giant scam, that the mickey mouse Scottish government thinks is an accurate measure of their worth!

Added by David on 2010-05-20 05:35:53

Too late for me as I complete on Monday. But right none the less. As an aside some need to understand that we have never elected a prime minister, we are not the US, we elect MPs who in turn elect the Prime Minister. I am no friend of Brown or the Labour Party but he like any other Prime Minister was correctly appointed to the office As was John Major, Alec Douglas Home, and Churchill to name a few who were appointed after a predessor resigned.

Added by Cain Weber on 2010-05-20 05:33:17

Anyone that put their house on the market just before an election and paid out money is, im sorry to say it,either ill advised or naive. D Cameron has long said it would go. No sympathy im sorry to say.

Added by Jack P on 2010-05-20 04:55:36

This was yet another stupid regulation brought in by Incapability Brown the unelected prime minister. I look forward to loads more of the red tape which had been brough in by New Labour to be thrown in the bin where most of it has belonged from the outset!

Added by Dennis Miller on 2010-05-20 04:45:34

Not that I necessarily agree with HIPS as they are (were) but what is wrong with a seller providing useful information to a buyer at the start? If you were selling a car, you wouldn't refuse to give the buyer the service history or tell them when the MOT runs out!
So , get rid of HIPS, but what are they going to do to speed up the selling process and make it more efficient?

Added by Ian on 2010-05-20 03:55:58

Not before time it was just another of taking money off homeowners for the benefit of surveyors

Added by Glenn Cooper on 2010-05-20 03:51:52

Nevertheless, a good move by the new government. This country has too much red tape.

Added by Ian Richardson on 2010-05-20 03:22:12

Anyone in the housing industry new from the begiining this was another RIP OFF for those selling their property's Labour Minsyers knew this but did nothing to revert this policy, Perhaps under Brown it went towards their expenses
Good move for the housing martket.

Added by Steve Jones on 2010-05-20 03:19:45

I have just paid out £411.25 to put our house on the market and now they're scrapped. We've been on the market 14 days. Surely this is robbery? Refund please

Added by Danny on 2010-05-20 03:10:41

Typical.....I paid out for a HIP last month!

Added by sarah moorhouse on 2010-05-20 03:05:43

i've paid for a hip so yes i would like a refund too £400.00 for nothing!

Added by helen ross-wheeler on 2010-05-20 03:01:27

what happens to the people like myself that were forced to buy the home owner pack before my house could go on the market do we get that money refunded HELEN

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