Packs that are not Hip

From 1 June 2007 it will be illegal to sell a house/flat without a Home Information Pack.

The pack will include a certificate which rates a property’s energy efficiency. Packs will also contain details of the lease, local searches and a list of items included in the sale.

Packs will cost more than £400 but if you don't have one, you can be fined £200. Failure to produce a pack, however, will not be a criminal offence.

The packs are widely opposed by members of the property industry, including the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors, the Council of Mortgage Lenders and the National Association of Estate Agents. Last week, it emerged that only 1,000 people have trained as inspectors, out of the Government’s target of 7,400.

Nick Salmon, the commercial director of Harrison Murray estate agents and founder of campaign group Splinta – Seller’s Pack Law Is Not The Answer – said that many homeowners will "do the maths" and risk the fine. "There is a great deal of anger among homeowners who do not see the point of these packs and consider them yet another stealth tax," he said. "Sellers have nothing but contempt for the new law and many will go ahead without HIPs, especially as a potential fine is less than the cost of the pack."

Once again, this Government has proved itself to be incompetent and inept.

(With Roya Nikkhah)