I did what you suggested, well almost, instead I just re-named the original plugin folder, which deactivated the plugin as expected.
Then I downloaded and reinstalled the plugin again. After activating and testing I then deleted the older version from the admin side and it even removed the re-named original plug in folder too. Now all is working fine with the latest version and all my searches are intact.
As always, many thanks for the time taken to answer my questions.
Regards
Wayne