According to Hipstar, the Communities and Local Government (CLG) has sent a leaflet to all estate agents in England and Wales that prominently states that HIPs will become law on 1 June 2007. Hipstar believe this is the most proactive statement to date to confirm that there is no likelihood of a deferment to the HIP programme.
The leaflet titled "Home Information Packs, is your business prepared?", outlines the obligations and duties of an estate agent, the contents of a HIP and clearly advises agents to choose a HIP provider now.
Commenting on this move, Stephen Maskens, chief executive of Hipstar, said: "It really is about time that the government engaged directly with estate agents to dispel some of the doubt that HIPs will arrive on 1 June. It is a fact that many estate agents and mortgage brokers still have very poor knowledge levels about HIPs and are unprepared to implement them."
The next key events in the HIP timetable are the delivery of revised HIP regulations on 29 March and the regulations becoming law on 19 April.
Stephen Maskens added: "These dates are focused on by those that hope that HIPs will simply never arrive and are crediting these events with more significance than they deserve. Those that leave a decision over the sourcing of HIPs much longer are likely to miss out on the training that could be available from a provider, and have to fumble their way into HIPs. The government have also stated that their public awareness campaign will start before the end of March and therefore consumer awareness of HIPs could be higher than the professionals they approach. We recommend that training starts now with basic understanding of what a HIP is, what it contains and why they are being introduced.”
