Housing minister Yvette Cooper is reported as saying 'it is crazy that over £1 million a day is wasted [on failed transactions]' (see [2005] Gazette, 3 November, 5).

Where on earth does she get her figures from? Does she have any idea as to how much will be wasted daily on home information pacts (HIPs) in cases where sellers subsequently decide to take their properties off the market; searches expire or become too old to be relied on; or, and more importantly, where buyers will not be prepared to rely on sellers' HIPs and carry out their own, investigations, surveys and searches?


In my experience, the number of transactions that fail to proceed by reason of title investigation, search results or surveys is very small. More common reasons are that sellers cannot or do not find alternative properties to buy, or for other reasons owing to a change in circumstances, decide not to sell after all. Buyers do not proceed, again owing to changes in personal circumstances or because they find another property that they prefer to buy.


The Law Society appears to be resigned to the fact that new regulations are inevitable, and the President even appears to be embracing regulation in some form. I find this hard to believe as it is not a view shared by those members of the profession with whom I speak and who, like me, would prefer to see vigorous objection to the whole principle of HIPs and state interference.


As to the minister's worthless pledge to cut costs, how does she propose to compensate sellers and buyers alike when inevitably her plans prove to be more costly and her promise is broken? Will compensatory payments be made out of the vast amount of revenue that the Treasury will gain from the VAT payable by sellers on the fees payable for producing HIPs and the income or corporation tax payable on the profits made by the HIP providers?


Rex Garton, Mason Baggott & Garton, Scunthorpe