60 Seconds with.....James Sherwood-Rodgers
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Quest was sold to Landmark Information Group in July 2007. What has happened since?
Quest already had an established position in the field of linking lenders with surveyors and in terms of workflow it still considers itself to be the post office of that world. The attraction of the deal was that Landmark had an enormous amount of information and was looking at fresh ways to use this in innovative applications.
Since that time we’ve been looking at the links that Quest had in place and working out ways to deliver useful information to lenders and surveyors using its existing platform.
The Conservatives have pledged to scrap Home Information Packs. Have the packs been a waste of time and money?
Most professionals feel the housing market could be improved and Home Information Packs have been Labour’s attempt to change things. Whether the Tories scrap HIPs or reform the system we’ll have to wait and see.
I think the direction of government policy after the next general election will be removing Labour red tape and allowing businesses to innovate to deliver better services to consumers and the market as a whole. We need some structural reform of the system but whether HIPs have been the right way to go is another matter.
How would you streamline the home buying process?
We’re a member of the E-Homebuying forum and have proposed a set of measures we think would improve the process - having upfront information is good thing but this has to be the right information.
There are a range of broader issues that don’t relate only to surveying which could be looked at but I don’t regard any of them as a silver bullet. We are focussed on delivering better information and helping everyone in the chain to be better informed. We can make the process easier, quicker and more certain.
What is Q-Guard?
It is a fraud protection and prevention tool. Quest deals with the majority of lending surveys in the UK so we can help lenders to spot fraud early in the process.
But the problem with fraud is that it’s a game of cat and mouse. As soon as the industry improves its detection methods those committing criminal acts find ways to get round them.
It’s essential that fraud tools should be constantly evolving so fresh ways of thinking about the problem are always helpful.
