Disaster for 1,000 trainees as HIP firm goes under...

At least 1,000 people training to be Domestic Energy Assessors are thought to have been caught up in the collapse into administration of a HIP training firm.

It is thought that there were some 800 people actively in training, plus a large number who had started their training but dropped out, although they have not officially signed off.

Some are believed to be former soldiers who will have served in Iraq and Afghanistan.

They and others face losing all their savings and, to complete their training elsewhere, will have to find more money.

The Surrey-based business Property Professionals, which changed its name from Home Inspector Training, went into administration last week.

Its sister company, HIP HIP Hooray, is believed still to be trading, although a source outside the company claimed it had not paid suppliers for two months and staff had not received their full salaries for January.

One DEA said he had been approached by another energy assessment firm to do work for Hamptons – work he had previously done through HIP HIP Hooray. But he said he had not been paid for the last nine EPCs done for Hamptons and was surprised that the work had apparently been picked up by another panel type of business.

Many of the Property Professionals (formerly HIT) trainees are believed to have spent their redundancy money on training. Others are ex-Forces personnel who spent their resettlement allowances. Many had to take out extra loans to pay for the £10,000 courses.

Property Professionals had four training centres, at its headquarters in Tolworth near Kingston in Surrey, Bristol, Birmingham and Manchester.

Joseph Pestell, secretary of the Institute of Home Inspection, said: “I have visited a couple of these training centres and they are large. Any room would have 15 or so people in it at any one time. They were training for what they had been told would be lucrative new careers as Domestic Energy Assessors, commercial assessors or fire risk assessors.

“Many of these students now have little prospect of completing their training and qualifications,” he said. “I suspect that 1,000 is an under-estimate of the numbers involved, although hopefully we will know more this week.

“Many of these are vulnerable people, recently made redundant or on armed forces’ resettlement grants. Many have taken out loans to finance their training.

“Over the past two years, the Institute has repeatedly raised concerns with the Government and public authorities about the company and its associated companies. Sadly, no action has been taken.

“It is really too early to say at this stage how the situation may be resolved for the trainees, but the Institute is already in contact with the appropriate authorities, including the Awarding Body for the Built Environment (ABBE) and other training providers to see what may be done to help.”

He said he was mystified that Property Professionals had gone into administration, as he said his understanding was that it had been cash-rich to the tune of £8m a few years ago.