By Wendy Abiri and Abigail Opiah
Islington Trading Standards is cracking down on letting agencies in a fight to make them adhere to higher standards for the consumer.
Letting agents have been required to belong to a government-approved Redress Scheme since October 2014. Nut now the ITS will be carrying out checks to ensure lettings agent comply with the Scheme.
Under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, letting agencies must be members of the Scheme, which is an independent body if a dispute arises. Letting agencies must also clearly display the fees they charge to landlords and tenants, in shop or online, and explain what they are for.
Chris Touli, 30, a Redress spokesman, said: “This complaint service allows consumers of letting agencies to voice their issues and have it addressed. This is why letting agencies must be involved so that their actions are regulated. We deal with complaints from rent and hidden fee charges to consumer’s complaints about damages to the property.”
Type of complaints
The Redress Scheme deals with any issues to do with letting agents, as long as the property rented is private.
Types of complaints are:
- Rudeness or discourtesy
- Hidden fees
- Abuse by landlords
- Poorly carried out repairs in a property, refusal to fix problems or long delays in repairs
- Abrupt change in letting agent charges
- If property appears different than in photos
- Problems getting deposit back fairly
According to the Islington trading standards team: “A three-month grace may apply for letting agencies to get onto the scheme or else these agencies could face a fine of up to £3,000.”
Parks Properties on Holloway Road declined to make a comment when questioned about them adhering to the Redress Scheme.
How To Complain About Your Letting Agent – (which.co.uk)
1. Go straight to your letting agency. Try emailing, calling, faxing any form of communication, directly contact them and do it as soon as possible.
2. Tell a trade body. If you want to complain about your current situation try talking to a trade body or professional organisation, who are always there to help you. (There’s a code of practise that all agents must follow with an arbitration service in order to help resolve the compliant.)
The main trade bodies are:
ARLA (the Association of Renting and Letting Agents)
NAEA (the National Association of Estate Agents)
NALS (the National Approved Letting Scheme)
UKALA (the UK Association of Letting Agents)
3. Tell a Trading standard. If your agent is not a member of a professional organisation and if you’re still unhappy try complaining to a trading standard who can take your compliant further. Under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, i.e. you paid an unreasonable amount of money for a service or if it took an unreasonable amount of time. And if you think your letting agent is in breach of the Consumer Right Act 2015.
4. Report the letting agent to Advertising Standard Agency (ASA). By law all letting agents must advertise all fees and charges upfront in their adverts, whether online or offline.
5. Use the small claims court. If you lost money because of poor letting agent’s service standards you can take your case to the small claims court.
If you have any further questions visit the HM Courts & Tribunals Service online in England and Wales or your local court to get a claim form and the other documents that explain the small claims process.
Local Trading Standards
Address:
Islington Council Trading Standards
Service Website Directions
Trading Card Shop
Upper St, London N1 1XR
Phone: 020 7527 3198.
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