Estate agents have been subject to the controls of statutory regulation since 1979, but despite the fact that letting agents often deal with large sums of cash on behalf of tenants and landlords, they have thus far avoided the same regulation.
A change to the law
Many in the industry have been campaigning for a long time for the government to introduce legislation to help cut down the incidence of poor practice in the industry, so yesterday’s decision in the House of Lords to make an amendment to the Enterprise Bill, which allows for statutory regulation of letting agents to be introduced, has been widely welcomed.
“Renting is now the only housing option for millions and our research has shown this market is dogged by poor practice and there is an alarming lack of consumer protection. Tenants deserve much better and the Government must take this opportunity to improve regulation and redress in this sector. We want letting agents to be covered by the same rules as estate agents, overseen by an independent ombudsman,” commented Richard Lloyd of Which?
How will the changes affect landlords?
Rogue letting agents have long been the scourge of landlords (and tenants) and although there are a great many reputable letting agents who provide an excellent service, there are still all too many who act improperly. With the recent change to the law, landlords will now be protected and the Office of Fair Trading will have the power to ban agents who rip off their customers, which is good news for everyone.
