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UPDATE
The CLG have released a statement on their website confirming
that the Home Information Pack (HIP) is to be suspended
with effect from 21st May 2010.
In addition to this, CLG have revised the regulations
to ensure that an EPC will be required at the commencement
of the marketing of a property and a new
duty has been introduced on both the seller and agent
to ensure that the EPC has been commissioned.
The
full statement can be read at the CLG
website (click to be redirected) and the main points
are summarised below:
Communities
Secretary of State Eric Pickles and Housing Minister
Grant Shapps have today laid an order suspending HIPs
with immediate effect,
pending primary legislation for a permanent abolition.
The Secretary of State has taken this swift action in
order to avoid uncertainty and prevent a slump
in an already fragile housing market. Today's announcement
sends a clear message of encouragement to people thinking
of selling their home that they
can put it on the market with less cost and hassle.
Mr
Pickles and Mr Shapps also said that the Government
is determined to help people reduce their energy bills,
improve our energy security and tackle
climate change by increasing the energy efficiency of
homes. Sellers will therefore still be required to commission,
but won't need to have received, an EPC
before marketing their property and the Government will
consider how the EPC can play its part in the new drive
for a low carbon and eco-friendly economy.
Amended
Energy Performance of (Certificates and Inspections)
Buildings Regulations 2010
Sellers and estate agents are no longer required to
have or provide copies of HIPs with effect from 21st
May 2010. In order to ensure that people selling their
homes continue to make an Energy Performance Certificate
available to prospective buyers, CLG have also laid
before Parliament the Energy Performance of Buildings
(Certificates and Inspections) (England and Wales) (Amendment)
Regulations 2010 which introduces a number of new legal
requirements on both
sellers and agents including:
•
a new duty on the seller to secure that an Energy Performance
Certificate (EPC) has been 'commissioned' before marketing
of the property commences where
no such certificate is already available
• an EPC has been 'commissioned' when a Domestic
Energy Assessor has been instructed to prepare the EPC
and the EPC has either been paid for or has
given a clear undertaking to pay for it
• a new duty on the person acting on behalf of
the seller, e.g. estate agents, to be satisfied that
an EPC has been commissioned before commencing marketing
• a new duty on both the seller and a person acting
on their behalf to make reasonable efforts to secure
an EPC within 28 days
•
all of the new duties carry fixed penalty fines where
the seller and agent fail in their duties conferred
on them by the new regulations
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