It doesn't pay to listen to the anti-hip lobby

Responding to the publication of a report by a House of Lords committee into the regulations governing the introduction of Home Information Packs (HIPs) and Energy Performance Certificates, Brian Scannell, managing director of SAVA and National Energy Services, said:

"It's hardly surprising that the Lords committee would question the effectiveness of HIPs without Home Condition Reports. What is frustrating is that the very organisations that persuaded the Government to drop mandatory Home Condition Reports (HCRs) last summer are now arguing that they are essential.

"Having listened to these organisations once, the Government must not make the same mistake again.

“The opponents of HIPs are limiting consumer choice and preventing improvement. They are trying to kill the opportunity for innovative estate agents to provide HCRs to differentiate their service and deliver benefits to their customers.

"Home Condition Reports are a brilliant, buyer-friendly innovation. If Government is really serious about ensuring greater consumer protection and efficiency in the housing market, it should do whatever it can to maximise the market for HCRs.

"The introduction of mandatory HIPs is the essential framework upon which such improvements to the home buying and selling process can be built. The sad fact is that the opponents of HIPs simply want to maintain the status quo, placing their interests ahead of their customers'.”

On the committee's criticisms about 'over-implementation' of the EU Directive with the introduction of Energy Performance Certificates, Brian Scannell said:

"I think the committee has missed the point. The purpose of introducing Energy Performance Certificates is to inform prospective home buyers and to encourage them to act on the content. That depends on the information being up to date and accurate rather than up to 10 years old and out of date.

"Requiring an updated Energy Performance Certificate when a property is marketed is therefore just an essential and logical first step in tackling the problem of energy waste from our homes.

"Buyers deserve timely, reliable information and recommendations provided by a well qualified expert - which is exactly what the current proposals deliver."