Lack of content in HIPS a problem

Some Home Information Packs could be letting down sellers with poor content, a senior county solicitor has cautioned.

Evidence is emerging that some providers of the newly-required packs are not completing them with the correct paperwork, leading to potential delays and even extra costs for home sellers.

John Burrowes, senior partner at PCB Solicitors, which has its head offices on Shrewsbury Business Park, explained: “The Home Information Pack team of the Department for Communities and Local Government is feeding back to us that some providers are putting only ‘register views’ of property plans in their packs.

“It has been made quite clear that these are not sufficient and are a breach of the regulations relating to HIPs.

“Only the ‘official copy’ of the property plan is acceptable and anything else is likely to end up in the bin when it is received by the purchaser’s solicitor.

“Official copies are required as these are encrypted documents that the Land Registry will stand by - for example if there are any errors in the register - and are therefore acceptable during the conveyancing process.”

A variety of Home Information Pack providers have sprung up since the introduction of the new system, but Mr Burrowes stressed that having your solicitor put the pack together ensured all of the regulations were followed to the letter.

He added: “We have invested a lot of energy in ensuring that we can efficiently produce the HIP that our clients need, keeping down the complexity of the process and guaranteeing that it follows the letter of the regulations.

“I think many home-sellers are realising there is a huge benefit to that.”