The lawyer hired by the group making a claim against Purplebricks and other hybrid agencies on behalf of the ‘self-employed’ LPEs and territory owners says the action could cost the estate agency ‘tens of millions’ of pounds.

Aidan Loy (main picture), who is a seasoned employment litigation expert brought on board by Contractors for Justice (C4J) to lead its claim, says previous legal action would indicate an average claim of between £30,000 and £50,000.

“This will vary based on the length of service and remuneration while they were at the agency,” says Loy during a video interview with Russell Quirk.

This estimate is based in part on a case that The Negotiator unearthed in March this year, highlighting how a former employee of Purplebricks initially won a Tribunal hearing against the firm, only to later withdraw his claim.

Window of opportunity

The appointment of Loy means the window of opportunity for former or existing LPEs and TOs at Purplebricks – or other hybrid agencies who used a similar ‘self-employment’ model – is now shutting as C4J prepares to go to court.

“I believe that this case is part of the long-running line of similar cases including Uber where companies have attempted to reduce their costs by effectively claiming that their employees were not employees and avoid sick and holiday pay and pension contributions,” says Loy.

“After looking at the evidence we’ve collected, this is pretty much a slam dunk as far as I’m concerned.”

100s of claimants

Loy will now lead the Group Litigation Order (GLO) on behalf of the ‘hundreds of potential claimants’ who have signed up on a ‘no win-no fee’ basis.

During the video Loy also claims that potential litigants have ‘nothing to fear by becoming visible as claimants in a GLO’.

Purplebricks has made multiple statements in the past rejecting the legal basis on which the C4J group is expected to launch its claim.

Agents wishing to find out more should visit the C4J website