Tribunal reserves judgement as Rightmove legal hearing ends

The Competition Appeal Tribunal has reserved its judgement following a hearing on a £1.5billion legal claim against Rightmove.

The legal action is being taken on behalf of thousands of estate agents who claim they have been overcharged by the property portal through unfair fees.

The case is being let by a former Competition and Markets Authority panel member Jeremy Newman.

The Competition Appeal Tribunal heard arguments this week on whether the case can be brought on an opt-out basis or if each involved agent would need to actively opt-in.

We remain confident that opt-out is the most realistic path to redress for the businesses impacted by Rightmove’s unfair fees.”

Newman argued that the case should proceed as a group claim on an opt-out basis.

But Rightmove says that the claim should only be certified, if at all, on an opt-in basis, letting businesses decide whether to participate. The portal has also proposed a hybrid approach requiring larger businesses that spent more than £1million during the claim period to opt in.

The portal also questions whether Newman is the right person to bring the case, how it is being funded and says there has been no plausible methodology for how the claim value and compound interest has been calculated.

A decisions on if and how the case proceeds is expected in a few months.

Legal claims

Commenting after the hearing, Newman says: “Rightmove has not tried to strike out these claims.

“Instead, its focus is on how the case goes ahead, not whether it should. Rightmove wants thousands of small and medium-sized businesses to sign up one by one, which they know is costlier, riskier and more burdensome.

“We remain confident that opt-out is the most realistic path to redress for the businesses impacted by Rightmove’s unfair fees. The Tribunal has reserved its judgment, which we respect and appreciate is not unusual. We will not be commenting further while a decision is pending.”

Rightmove referred to its previous statements when asked for further comment.

The portal has previously said the case is without merit. It says: “Rightmove is confident in the value we provide to our partners and consumers, who are at the core of our   business solutions and digital platform.

“As one of the most efficient parts of the UK housing market, we help people across the UK to move home by bringing buyers, sellers, renters, landlords and agents together. Our platform continues to provide a growing range of constantly evolving products and features which facilitate market transparency, liquidity and confidence. This claim is without merit, and we will defend it vigorously.”