CoPSO welcomes the Government’s support for personal local searches in HIPs and the introduction of the Search Code

Friday 26 January 2007

The Council of Property Search Organisations (CoPSO) welcomes the Government’s confirmation that personal local searches can be included in HIPs from 1 June 2007 and that the consumer will benefit from a competitive search market through a better and faster service. Personal searches are currently carried out in around 50% of all home buying transactions and cost on average £75, compared to those provided by certain local authorities where fees can reach over £300.   

The search industry is committed to ensuring that good standards of practice are adopted across all search organisations and the Search Code was introduced in September 2006.  There has already been wide stakeholder support for the Code and the Government’s endorsement of the Code is particularly welcome. 

In 2005, the Office of Fair Trading recommended that local authorities make all their local search information available to personal search companies. CoPSO looks forward to working with the Government to ensure that prompt access to this data is delivered and that the protracted delays and restrictions currently imposed by some local authorities are abolished.   

The Government intends to explore further whether flood and ground stability searches should be included more widely in HIPs.  CoPSO will provide input as part of this debate focussing on  what information should be included in these reports to best inform the consumer.

Commenting on the Government’s announcement, CoPSO Chairman Fiona Hoyle said:

‘We welcome the Government’s confirmation that personal local searches can be included in HIPs from 1 June 2007.  Competition in the search industry is unequivocally a good thing in ensuring that consumers receive an efficient and value-for-money service.  The introduction of the Search Code means that searches are provided to good standards of practice and the Government’s support for the Search Code endorses these new measures’.   

Notes to Editors

• The Council of Property Search Organisations (CoPSO), is the leading trade association for the property search industry.  Members provide a range of property information reports including local, environmental, mining, drainage and water data and produce over 2m searches each year. CoPSO’s overall objective is to drive both market and product improvements to deliver the industry’s vision of faster and better informed property transactions.
• CoPSO has represented the search industry on the Government’s working groups reviewing the content of Home Information Packs, to be introduced in 2007. 

In September 2006, CoPSO launched the Search Code incorporating:

• A Code of Practice
• Training requirements
• Independent registration and compliance functions
• An independent adjudication scheme.
• Robust insurance provisions

The introduction of the Search Code underpins CoPSO’s firm belief that, in the interests of consumer protection, only those search organisations which adhere to prescribed standards should be able to provide searches as part of the home buying process. Please see www.propertycodes.org.uk.

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