The Labour government originally proposed the new regulations before the 1997 general election. They were again mentioned in the party's 2001 manifesto, and were included in the 2004 Housing Act. HIPs are also required under a new EU directive on home energy assessments, which comes into force in 2009.
There has been much debate surrounding HIPs, with some industry experts claiming that they are nothing more than unnecessary red tape. Also, details such as whether a property is liable to flooding - a hot topic given recent weather patterns - or if a property is built on contaminated land is not included in the packs.
Grant Shapps, the Conservative Party's shadow housing minister, said: "If buyers trust these packs, I fear they will be lulled into a false sense of security."
However, despite the controversy, HIPs are here to stay, and it is vital that homeowners who are planning to sell their property get things right. A financial penalty of up to £200 a day could be the result of non-compliance.
Therefore, potential sellers should get to grips with the new regulations before they put their home on the market.
A HIP will be prepared by or on behalf of the seller, either by the seller themselves, an estate agent, solicitor or specialist pack provider. They will contain documents such as a copy of title deeds and registers to prove ownership, results of standard local authority searches and an Energy Performance Certificate - a document that is central to the new scheme.
They are designed to rate the energy efficiency of a home, on a scale from A (very efficient) to G (very inefficient).
