Secret Hips payments to estate agents

The price of home information packs (Hips) is being inflated by up to £150 to cover secret commission payments made to estate agents, Channel 4 News has claimed. Channel 4 said it had obtained documents showing an arrangement between a Hip provider and an estate agent where the price for one of the packs was increased to cover commission to the agent for using the company as its sole Hip provider. The Law Society has called on the government to take action, while the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors is investigating.