Isobel Thomson
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Letting fees display rules enforcement is weak or non-existent, research reveals
The fees display regulations introduced two years ago to force agents to show how much they charge tenants remain largely unenforced, research by the National Approved Letting Scheme (NALS) has revealed. NALS made Freedom of Information requests to every local authority in England and the results make for grim reading, while also highlighting the huge challenges that cash-strapped councils will face when they begin enforcing the government’s proposed letting fees ban. An astonishing 93% % of all the Local Authorities canvassed have not issued any penalties or final warnings to agents for not displaying their fees since the new regulations were introduced in 2015. And the three local authorities who have issued financial penalties – Warwickshire, Kensington & Chelsea and Redbridge – have only mustered THREE in total. Only one of these has been paid in full. Local Authorities’ ability to issue warning letters is only marginally better. Just three local authorities have issued warning letters in significant numbers – East Sussex, Redbridge and Walsall – and in total only 83 warning letters have been issued across the UK so far. Lack of resources These figures reflect the lack of resources that most local authorities have available to police the regulation of letting agents. The NALS research shows…
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NALS calls for impartial report into lettings market
National Approved Letting Scheme (NALS) CEO ex Isobel Thomson (pictured) has criticised the government’s proposed ban on tenant lettings fees and called for an impartial report by the Competition and Market Authority (CMA) into the lettings market. Her comments follow the CMA’s recent recommendations for the legal services sector, which after a year-long investigation found that lawyers need to be more transparent about pricing and join a redress scheme, legal requirements that agents must already meet. “Despite the findings of the report, which calls for more transparency, the legal industry has been allowed to continue without the same level of government intervention the lettings industry will face with a ban on fees,” she says. “The proposed ban is based on limited research and anecdotal evidence, as well as a lack of understanding of the likely consumer detriment that will be caused by removing payment for the services the agent provides. “We believe more impartial information is crucial in advance of taking such a drastic measure as a ban. “Given the government’s focus on improving the experience for the consumer across a number of sectors, and the importance of the private rented sector, NALS believe the CMA is best placed to…
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