Insurance News Archive

Hips a "costly indulgence"

Home Information Packs (Hips) are a "costly indulgence", according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML).

Speaking at the Property Forum tonight, director general of the CLM, Michael Coogan, will call for the government to "think again" about the packs.

According to the group, the dry run of Hips which is set to take place before their full implementation in June 2007, will not provide a comprehensive test of their effectiveness.

The council has already identified how government funding has artificially incentivised take-up of Hips, creating an unclear picture of their true cost.

Mr Coogan said the current Hips framework "is simply not proportionate and could not pass a robust regulatory impact assessment".

He added: "Comparing our experience with other countries around the world, I am even more convinced that market forces should be the primary mechanism for delivering improvements to the house buying and selling process."

27 Oct 2006