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L


ettings agents across the UK are continuing to show their support for The


TPO– still growing! “With 90% of


Are you a member yet? Asks Gerry Fitzjohn, TPO


Property Ombudsman scheme, with more than 300 offices joining this year to take the total past 9,000. “The Government continues to


ignore pleas for letting agents to be regulated in the same way as sales agents, which we believe would raise standards across the industry,” says Gerry Fitzjohn, chief operating officer of TPO. “But lettings agents are


showing themselves to be increasingly ready to commit to the TPO Lettings Code of Practice, which now has Stage 1 approval under the OFT Consumer Codes Approval Scheme and is fast moving towards full approval as we undertake monitoring of agents. “When you consider that TPO


only started offering redress for lettings six years ago this month, to achieve 9,068 letting offices within the scheme is phenomenal. We have enrolled around two thirds of all letting offices in the UK. “TPO also has 11,623 sales


offices, more than 90 per cent of the UK total, the highest-ever number and still rising. TPO is now the largest membership body in UK estate agency. It reflects the steady move within the industry towards the higher standards encouraged by our Codes of Practice and members should do more to promote the benefits and the commitment they have made. “They have gone far beyond the legal requirement, even for sales agents who are compelled


36 l June 2012 l TheNegotiator estate agents.”


all UK agents, TPO is now the largest membership body of UK


by law only to register for redress, which is a vastly weakened undertaking on their part that does not make them sign up to higher standards.” TPO is a not for profit


company owned and operated by the industry, with an independent council overseeing the appointment of the Ombudsman and the operation of the scheme itself.


“Our primary purpose is to


offer a complaints resolution service that can take the pressure off when agents have a difficult problem they can’t solve but really need to concentrate on running their own businesses,” added Gerry, a former director of Countrywide who has been in the industry since 1974. “TPO is not a regulator, as


some believe, nor should it be viewed as an enemy of the industry. It exists purely to resolve disputes between agents and buyers, sellers, landlords, or tenants, and ensure fair play, although members who commit serious breaches of our Codes are reported to the OFT and Trading Standards. This is a very rare event as the vast majority of


agents abide by the standards defined in the Codes and are committed to offering consumers greater protection by being members of TPO. “Decisions from the Ombudsman, Christopher Hamer, are purely evidence- based and he has had a great influence over the industry and raising standards since he was appointed to the post at the end of 2006.” Whilst encouraging all agents


to join the TPO scheme, members must also understand that they can be expelled if they do not follow the Code of Practice or pay awards decided upon by the Ombudsman. In April, a Derbyshire property agency was expelled from The Property Ombudsman scheme after failing to pay an award made against it. TPO had delayed the expulsion


of Letzlet Ltd, trading as Beechwood Lettings, while the complainant was helped to obtain a court judgment of £2,176, including court costs, against Letzlet Ltd, of Beechwood House, Matlock Street, Bakewell. The TPO Disciplinary and


Standards Council notified the agency of its expulsion in February and, as it has not responded, the expulsion has now been confirmed to agency owner Ms H Gregory. The agent had failed to pay an


award of £1,226, which included £976 in rent owing, had delayed paying rent into the complainant landlord’s account on 12 occasions over a period of 19 months. It failed to cooperate with the Ombudsman’s


investigation and also breached the TPO Code of Practice by not having a complaints system. The company had applied for


its TPO membership to be transferred to Beechwood Property Portfolio Ltd from Letzlet Ltd, which had traded as Beechwood Property Sales. This application was made five months after the change of holding company and the new company has never completed registration with TPO. Beechwood Property Portfolio


is currently advertising properties for sale on its website and illegally displaying the TPO logos for both sales and lettings. It is not registered with an approved redress scheme, as it is required to do under the Consumers, Estate Agents and Redress Act 2007. On the afternoon of March 28,


Helen Williamson at its Matlock office confirmed by telephone that the company was still selling and letting properties across most of the Peak District. “Only two weeks ago, the Ombudsman, Christopher Hamer, made a renewed call for all lettings agents to be regulated in the same was a residential sales agents and when you look at the behaviour of this firm it’s easy to see why regulation is essential,” said Gerry Fitzjohn. “This agency will be reported


to the local Trading Standards team, who have the power to serve a fixed penalty notice for a £1,000 fine if this agency offers houses for sale while not registered with a redress scheme.”


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