A Guide to Property Redress Schemes in England and Wales
Confused about property redress schemes? This guide makes it easy to understand what they are, why they’re important and the steps you should take to resolve issues.
What is a property redress scheme?
A property redress scheme is a process that allows landlords and tenants to submit a complaint against their letting agency to an independent third party. Giving landlords and tenants the ‘right to redress’ helps to ensure high standards of professionalism across the sector.
Issues resolved by redress schemes may include hidden fees, unclear information, regular unannounced visits and poor or overdue repairs.
Property managers and accredited letting agencies in England and Wales are legally required to join a redress scheme as part of the Letting Agency Work and Property Management Work (Approval and Designation of Schemes) (England) Order 2013.
A property manager is a person or company paid to maintain a property and is typically hired for premises with multiple residences, such as a block of flats.
There are two redress schemes available:
Private landlords do not need to join a redress scheme, although this may change as part of the Renters (Reform) Bill. Local authorities and other social housing providers are also exempt.
How does a property redress scheme work?
A redress scheme works by helping landlords and tenants with issues that can’t be resolved with agents or property managers.
Here are the steps you should take:
- Contact your letting agent. See if the problem can be easily resolved without involving a third party. If you are not satisfied after making contact, you should make a formal complaint following their in-house procedure.
- Submit a complaint to the redress scheme. If your complaint is not resolved, your letting agent or property manager should give you the details of their redress scheme. This information should also be displayed in their offices and/or on their website.
- Let the redress scheme investigate. The redress scheme will contact the letting agent or property manager directly to resolve the complaint. If this doesn’t work, the scheme will provide a resolution service. They will speak to you and your agent or property manager to understand the situation and make recommendations to move forward.
- Await a decision. If a resolution can’t be mutually agreed, the redress scheme will make a final decision. If they support your complaint, they will ask the letting agent or management company to formally apologise and resolve any outstanding issues. If you do not agree with the outcome, you can choose to start court proceedings.
- Receive compensation. If the redress scheme believes it appropriate, they may ask the letting agent or property manager to compensate you for any distress and inconvenience they have caused. The maximum award a property redress scheme can make is £25,000.
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