The Government has apologised to a property industry trade body after agreed text within the new consultation on reform of the home buying and selling process was changed at the last moment, causing confusion among agents and tech firms alike.

The Residential Logbook Association (RLBA) says it worked with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG, main image) prior to the consultation going live this week, in which it was supposed to refer to Digital Property Logbooks, but instead the word ‘packs’ was used.

This prompted many agents to believe that it refers to a new kind of Home Information Pack, the previous Labour government’s unpopular attempt to force vendors to gather more information in advance of any marketing.

But after a heated debate between the RLBA and civil servants, the ministry has now apologised and asked that the RLBA issue a clarification, although the text of the consultation has to date not been changed.

Draft text

Nigel Walley, the trade body’s Chair, says: “Since the publication of the MHCLG Consultation on Home Buying & Selling the RLBA has been receiving emails from people trying to understand the wording of the Digital Property Logbook section and the questions it asked.

“We were shown the draft text of the section before publication and it was clear and precise.

“However, between our reviewing it and the publication of the consultation, someone got in to the text and messed with it. Alongside the reference to Digital Property Logbooks we now have something called a ‘Digital Property Pack’ which we have no knowledge of.

Walley says this appears to refer to a digital version of the HIPs that Labour tried to introduced in 2006/7 but was abandoned after heavy lobbying by the industry, including TV present Kirstie Allsopp.

Walley adds: “As far as we can see this is a made up product name with no actual providers in the market.  The new text that was added seems to blur the distinction between the two products in a way we strongly disagree with.

“In conversation with MHCLG they told us this new term refers to a digital version of ‘Upfront Information’, although this is not a product descriptor we recognise or endorse.

“Agents should remember, though, that the whole ‘Upfront Information’ idea is a HIP. The ‘packs’ are just the digital manifestation of it.”

Upfront information

“Nor is it used by any of the providers of digital Upfront Information active in the market.  The case study offered in the Digital Property Log Book section was for an Upfront Information company not a Logbook company (and one that also doesn’t use the term ‘Digital Product Pack’).

“MHCLG were unable to explain why this text and case study weren’t included in the Upfront Information section of the Consultation where it would have made perfect sense.

MHCLG has asked the RLBA: “Please advise people that if they want to provide answers that are specific to logbooks (ignoring “packs”) then as long as they make this clear in their response we can make that clear as we analyse responses.”

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