CoPSO – The Council of Property Search Organisations

The Conveyancing Report Agency is a member CoPSO.

The Council of Property Search Organisations (CoPSO) is the trade association for the property search industry. Members provide a broad range of property information reports including local, environmental, drainage and water data.

Property searches play an important role in the home buying process. They provide consumers with essential information they can use to decide whether to buy a particular property and at what price.

CoPSO’s mission is to:
• Help establish a favourable operating environment for members
• Provide a forum for discussion on non-competitive issues
• Provide information to assist members with their business

CoPSO has six objectives -
• To be a central representative body to put the views of organisations providing property information reports to Government departments and agencies, Parliament, and other relevant organisations.
• To be a research and statistical centre, to aggregate and publish statistics, and to provide analysis on the market for property information reports.
• To be a technical centre providing commentary, guidance and advice on all legal and other regulatory developments of relevance to property information reports.
• To provide a forum for the exchange of non-competitive information.
• To promote property search organisations.
• To establish and enforce a code of practice for the provision of property information reports.

CoPSO is currently concentrating on ensuring the acceptability of property information reports by both mortgage lenders and the Government for inclusion in the proposed Home Information Packs (HIPs).

The Conveyancing Report Agency works with CoPSO and its members to improve the products and services that we provide to the industry as a whole.

The Search Code and HIP Code have been introduced with the aim of delivering quality standards across both the property search industry and in Home Information Packs. The Property Codes Compliance Board (PCCB) has been established to maintain a register of firms committed to operating within these new standards of practice and to independently monitor compliance with the Codes.

• The Search Code provides protection for homebuyers, sellers, conveyancers and mortgage lenders, who rely on the information included in property search reports undertaken on residential property within the United Kingdom.
• The HIP Code provides protection for homebuyers, sellers, estate agents, conveyancers and mortgage lenders who rely on the information included in a Home Information Pack (HIP) provided on residential property within England and Wales.

The Conveyancing Report Agency are members of the Property Codes Compliance Board (PCCB)

Property Codes Compliance Board (PCCB):

• Independent registration and minimum compliance standards.
• Comprehensive insurance cover
• Regularly monitored and assessed for competence and compliance.
• Effective consumer complaints process via the Independent Property Codes Adjudication Scheme (IPCAS)

The Conveyancing Report Agency is committed to high quality standards and robust consumer protection that the PCCB has set out.