Two years into the era of home information packs it is easy, given the political uncertainty surrounding their future, to overlook the benefits of the change they have made in certain areas, to our antiquated home buying process.
One area in particular where there is real evidence of improvement is the delivery and quality of water and sewerage searches. Under the HIP regulations there is an obligation upon a seller to include within the pack comprising of legal documents and the energy performance certificate, information on the possibility of the property being flooded by foul sewage, as well as the established information about connection of the property to the public sewerage and mains water networks and the liabilities and restrictions associated with the proximity of water company assets to a property.
This represents a far more comprehensive collection of data than was previously supplied before the HIP was introduced and has clearly placed the consumer who is thinking of buying, in a far more informed position.
Encouraged by government to put into place improved infrastructure to cope with the expected increase in demand following the introduction of the HIP, water companies have invested heavily in new technology and service areas of their business, with the consequence that almost 90% of water searches in England and Wales are delivered in less than 3 days. This compares favourably with only 71% of searches being delivered in less than 3 days in 2006, prior to the beginning of the HIP regime.
There remain in my view areas within the water industry where there could still be further improvement. The cost of the water and sewage search still remains rather arbitrary and high, and as for the data the reports contain, there is strong argument for this to be delivered in a more consumer friendly summary so as to make it easier to follow and understand.
The water companies clearly have much to thank the HIP for, and as this has also resulted in a benefit to the consumer, it is hard to see why any future government, particularly a government that prides itself on being ‘progressive’, would wish to see an end to the ongoing improvements to the home buying process that industry is continuing to introduce on the back of the HIP.
One area in particular where there is real evidence of improvement is the delivery and quality of water and sewerage searches. Under the HIP regulations there is an obligation upon a seller to include within the pack comprising of legal documents and the energy performance certificate, information on the possibility of the property being flooded by foul sewage, as well as the established information about connection of the property to the public sewerage and mains water networks and the liabilities and restrictions associated with the proximity of water company assets to a property.
This represents a far more comprehensive collection of data than was previously supplied before the HIP was introduced and has clearly placed the consumer who is thinking of buying, in a far more informed position.
Encouraged by government to put into place improved infrastructure to cope with the expected increase in demand following the introduction of the HIP, water companies have invested heavily in new technology and service areas of their business, with the consequence that almost 90% of water searches in England and Wales are delivered in less than 3 days. This compares favourably with only 71% of searches being delivered in less than 3 days in 2006, prior to the beginning of the HIP regime.
There remain in my view areas within the water industry where there could still be further improvement. The cost of the water and sewage search still remains rather arbitrary and high, and as for the data the reports contain, there is strong argument for this to be delivered in a more consumer friendly summary so as to make it easier to follow and understand.
The water companies clearly have much to thank the HIP for, and as this has also resulted in a benefit to the consumer, it is hard to see why any future government, particularly a government that prides itself on being ‘progressive’, would wish to see an end to the ongoing improvements to the home buying process that industry is continuing to introduce on the back of the HIP.
No comments:
Post a Comment