Drop single survey idea, says Society
13 Nov 06
Property sale questionnaire better than information pack, claims convener
The Law Society of Scotland is urging the Scottish Executive to drop plans for a compulsory single survey provided by house sellers, fearing that it could have a negative impact on consumers.
In a statement released today the Society suggests that the single survey be made voluntary to ensure consumer choice. It believes that the property sale questionnaire (PSQ), jointly developed with the Scottish Consumer Council, the National Association of Estate Agents and Communities Scotland, now being piloted in a number of areas in Scotland, is a better alternative.
The PSQ is designed to be completed by the seller and made available to potential buyers before they consider putting in an offer. It includes information such as council tax bandings, alterations and extensions, building preservation guarantees and whether there is a maintenance contract for central heating.
Janette Wilson, convener of the Society's conveyancing Committee, said: "There is a great opportunity here to bring in reforms that will improve on the quality of information available during the housebuying process."
Concerns
Having engaged with the Executive to find practical ways to benefit the housebuying public, she added, "We promoted the property sale questionnaire as a viable alternative to an information pack containing a huge amount of overly legalistic documentation, which would be expensive and time consuming to prepare."
Ms Wilson said that the Society had been surprised when the Executive decided to push ahead with its proposals for a seller's survey, when all parties had acknowledged that single survey pilot had been a failure.
Among the Society's key concerns are conflict of interest arising from the inability of the purchaser, or their solicitor, to contact the surveyor who provided the report; that any repairs carried out by the seller after the single survey has been carried out, might not be to a high enough standard or the problem may be covered up; and that any single survey would be quickly out of date.
The UK Government recently decided that the homebuyers' report in England and Wales (the equivalent of the single survey) would not be made a compulsory part of the home information pack (HIP).
SCC surprise
The Scottish Consumer Council (SCC) expressed surprise at what it called "the apparent U-turn" by the Society on the single survey.
The council said it believed that the Society had reacted to strong pressure from the Edinburgh Conveyancers Forum.
Sarah O’Neill, the SCC’s legal officer, said: “We understand why some of those who make a living from buying and selling property will be worried about change, but we firmly believe that the single survey is in the consumer interest.
"We are convinced that in a few years' time, the new system will seem unremarkable, and we will wonder why it took us so long to finally adopt a more commonsense approach."