ombudsman
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Features
Where’s my deposit?
Katrine Sporle, The Property Ombudsman, adjudicates on a case of the non-return of an ‘unprotected’ deposit.
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Latest property news
Six agencies expelled from The Property Ombudsman
Gerry Fitzjohn, TPO Chairman, warns that expelled agents can be banned from carrying out agency business.
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Features
Policing property
Agents do suffer criticism and in some cases it may be justified. But the industry does self-police more effectively than some believe, as Joanne Christie found out.
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Latest property news
TPO pushes back against government plans for whole-sector ombudsman
The Property Ombudsman believes the industry should have separate redress schemes for the social and private halves.
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Latest property news
Government starts consultation on single housing ombudsman for whole sector
The government is to introduce a single ombudsman to cover the whole of the property industry including for the first time both new homes and rented property, and has announced a consultation. There are currently four different complaints bodies in housing and not all those operating within the industry must join them, a ‘gap’ that the government says it wants to close. The private treaty and lettings sectors have three ombudsman – although one of the recently said it was withdrawing from the market – plus there’s an additional ombudsman for the social housing sector. But private landlords are not currently compelled by law to join a redress scheme or be accountable to an ombudsman. Eight weeks The proposed initiative kicks off with an eight-week consultation which the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) says will help “shape a simpler and better complaints system” and that in future disputes will be “resolved faster” and homebuyers and tenants will be able to access compensation. The MHCLG consultation will look at various aspects of the property market including whether or not a ‘whole industry’ ombudsman is really needed, but also look at whether builders should be included in the scheme; how…
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Features
Non-disclosure of facts could be mis-selling
Q: When is a top-floor flat not a top-floor flat? A: When a developer wants to build a floor on top of it... says Katrine Sporle, The Property Ombudsman.
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Latest property news
Rogue agent: Ombudsman bans firm for 10 years over unpaid £181,000 award
In a shocking case of a rogue agent, a firm in Luton has been banned from The Property Ombudsman for ten years after failing to pay an award of £181,254 after it was found to have ‘deliberately’ not passed on substantial amounts of money to a landlord. Altavon Property Managemnet Ltd (APM), which was dissolved late last year but had been trading for three-and-a-half years prior to the award, was asked by a local landlord to manage 31 properties on their behalf based on a two-tier agreement. The landlord rented the properties to APM in return for a fixed return over a set period, leaving APM to manage and rent the properties to whoever they saw fit. By December 2016 APM was behind in rent payments to the tune of £57,000 and continued to miss payments, eventually leading the landlord to complain to TPO. Rogue agent After finding in the landlord’s favour, a large award was then agreed, based on the monies owed plus £200 for each missed payment and compensation for aggravation, distress and inconvenience. But APM failed to pay the award and, after being referred to its Disciplinary & Standards Committee, has now been expelled from TPO for ten…
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Features
Happy tenancy endings
"Take great care with the formalities in ending a tenancy, misunderstandings can be very expensive", says Katrine Sporle, The Property Ombudsman.
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Features
Tenants with lifestyle flaws
Unfortunately, being in the oldest profession in the world does not make a model tenant… says Katrine Sporle, The Property Ombudsman.
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Features
The curious story of the dog and the licence…
In the curious story of the dog and the licence, the agent was the one in the doghouse, says Katrine Sporle, The Property Ombudsman.
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