The home information pack could cause cash-flow problems for law firms and greater competition from estate agents and mortgage lenders, conveyancing solicitors were warned last week.

Plans for the pack - previously called a seller's pack - were met with strong criticism by conveyancers at the Law Society property section's annual conference.

The pack, which should be implemented by 2007, will provide buyers with a home condition report (a survey) as well as information on searches and title.

Sellers will pay for the packs on completion.

Michael Garson, Law Society Council member for residential conveyancing, said: 'There will be many commercial providers moving into this lucrative, billion-pound commercial market.

The home information pack will lead to competition from big, linked estate agents and lenders, who will package in the legal side of selling a home up front.

'But solicitors are in a key position.

About 70% of the population are already home owners - that means they are already our clients.'

With some local authority searches costing 200, fears were expressed that the scheme will lead to cash-flow problems for small firms if solicitors are expected to bear the cost of the search up front.

They will not be able to recoup the costs until the property is sold.

Dennis Purshouse, policy adviser in the Office for the Deputy Prime Minister, told delegates: 'We are looking into the issue of search costs.

Of course, solicitors do defer their fees at the moment.

'Our research has shown that 20-30% of searches are now done by personal search companies.

We are thinking of allowing these to go into the information pack.

Alternatively, if sellers have equity in their property, then the costs could be deferred by one of the commercial enterprises which we foresee coming into the market.'

Mr Purshouse added that the packs would not be introduced until sufficient people qualified to produce the home condition report are trained.

Rachel Rothwell