Time for whole industry to stand up against threat

Calls are mounting for Vince Cable’s Department for Business Innovation & Skills to defer the closing date of the consultation on changing the Estate Agents Act because so few people knew anything about it.

However, as things stand, the consultation is set to close tomorrow, and the entire industry is strongly urged to make its views known on this crucial issue (see the links at the end of this story).

For this reason, we are putting this story and the following one on LAT, as well as on its sister site, EAT, which broke the story yesterday.

But while individual agents and firms have been in the dark over plans to allow new entrants into the estate agency business who will not have to comply with the Estate Agents Act – for example, they will not have to offer redress via an Ombudsman scheme – it has emerged that stakeholders DID know.

The Property Ombudsman, RICS and NAEA have all attended meetings at the department.

The Property Ombudsman told EAT yesterday in a statement that as a redress scheme and not a trade body, it was not its place to let the industry know what was going on. It said that this was for the trade bodies to do.

TPO expects to make a robust response to the consultation by tomorrow’s deadline. You can read the full TPO statement made to EAT in the next story.

Mark Hayward, president of the NAEA, said: “The NAEA are of course submitting a response to the Government’s consultation on the Estate Agent Act.

“We strongly oppose any measure that erodes vital consumer protection, which we believe these proposals will do.

“We would be disappointed to see any government recommendations following this consultation which undermine consumer protection, and which do not take into account important issues for consumers such as including the lettings industry within the definition of the Estate Agents Act. We will be making this point very strongly in our submission.”

Peter Bolton King, global residential director of RICS, last night said: “The RICS are aware of these proposals and have had meetings with the relevant government department.
 
“Our balanced, yet robust, response has been submitted to the department, which will no doubt be made available by them in due course.
 
“Whilst we acknowledge that it is necessary to change the legislation, as it is out of date and produced before the advent of the internet, we are concerned about the way the Government are going about this and have expressed these concerns in our response.

“These centre particularly on potential consumer detriment from a growth of unregulated on line agents, operating outside of the Estate Agents Act, with no requirement to provide redress arrangements
 
“We would prefer a more holistic approach and continue to influence the UK Government to bring about wider reform.”
 
One person who knew nothing of the move to change the Estate Agents Act until EAT broke the story yesterday was Nick Salmon FNAEA, managing director of Harrison Murray and ex-SPLINTA campaigner.

He said: “Regrettably, I was completely unaware of the proposal to change the EA Act and therefore also unaware of the consultation.

“Although it is not CLG handling these proposals, having seen at first hand with HIPs how government departments can botch a consultation, I am not at all surprised that this has not registered on the property industry radar.

“It has all the hallmarks of a change that has not been thought through and which will be enacted in haste. Rushed legislation is very rarely good legislation.

“The department should acknowledge that they have not sufficiently publicised the proposals or the consultation and start the process afresh.”

Another agent who knew nothing about it was Trevor Kent, who said: “I would have expected (and indeed suffered) such underhand skulduggery from the last administration, particularly on HIPs of course, but I had hoped to see the much-vaunted ‘openness’ from the Conservatives – but hollow promises as always.

“The politicians have, no doubt, been wound up by their civil servants too (HIPs again) but, most likely, this relaxing of the Act has been proposed, researched and directed by donor-friends such as Tesco.

“Don’t forget, too, it’s always government policy to issue an anti estate agent initiative whenever their own stock is low.”

Rightmove also expressed its concerns. Last night, a spokesman said: “The Estate Agents Act provides a definition of the role of estate agents, which we support, which provides legislative protection for consumers.

“We strongly feel that any changes to the legislation must maintain a suitable level of protection for the home-moving public.”

Views can be emailed to: marcelle.janssis@bis.gsi.gov.uk

The consultation can be seen here link here