Estate and Letting Agents

It is a legal requirement for Estate and Letting Agents to join a Government-approved redress scheme. The two schemes approved by the National Trading Standards Estate Agency Team are:

• Property Redress Scheme
• The Property Ombudsman

Association of Residential Letting Agents

The Association of Residential Lettings Agents (ARLA) was formed in 1981 as the professional and regulatory body for letting agents in the UK. Members are governed by a Code of Practice providing a framework of ethical and professional standards and are required to have professional indemnity insurance cover.

ARLA members are covered by a bonding scheme which provides financial protection for client monies which have been misappropriated and the Association has its own complaints and disciplinary procedures so that any dispute is dealt with efficiently and fairly. Where necessary, suitable sanctions are imposed on the member.

National Association of Estate Agents

THE NAEA is the largest professional estate agency organisation in the UK. Representing nearly 10,000 members, the NAEA is committed to raising professional standards across all aspects of the property market for the benefit of member agents and ultimately the home moving public.

Membership of the NAEA is on an individual basis and includes principals, partners and directors of agencies and employees working in agencies. Only those companies which have Principal, Partner or Director as a Member are entitled to use the NAEA logo.

Property Ombudsman - Lettings

All estate agents are required to register with an Estate Agents Redress Scheme which can investigate complaints from members of the public. The Property Ombudsman (TPO) is an approved scheme under the Consumers, Estate Agents and Redress Act 2007.

Many estate agents have voluntarily agreed to follow The Property Ombudsman Code of Practice for Residential Estate Agents. Estate agents who follow the Code of Practice are required to provide additional consumer protection that goes beyond that required by law. They can be recognised by the blue TPO logo which they will display on their literature, websites and office windows.

Registered agents, who have chosen to not voluntarily abide by the obligations of the Code of Practice are not entitled to display the blue TPO logo.

Please visit the TPO website to verifiy the current membership status for this agent.

Trading Standards Institute - Approved Codes

The Consumer Codes Approval Scheme is facilitated self-regulation. It aims to bolster consumer protection and improve customer service standards by the approval and promotion of codes of practice; setting out the principles of effective customer service; recognising approved traders - look for the CTSI approved code logo.

We are now in our third year of operation and continue to evolve and expand our network of Code Sponsors. The Codes scheme is managed by the Consumer Codes Approval Board (CCAB) operated by CTSI.