From today (1 August), all homes for sale in England and Wales with four or more bedrooms must have a HIP for prospective buyers, detailing the property title, energy performance, planning permissions and searches.

The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has the power to assess whether an estate agent is fit to practice under the regulations and the Estate Agents Act. It can impose a ban and issue a Warning Order, then a Prohibition Order if the estate agent continues to breach the rules.

An OFT spokesman said:

"If an agent fails to comply, this could trigger an investigation into an agent's fitness to continue estate agency work."