Complaining about a letting agent: the redress scheme route

Every letting agent in England must, by law, belong to a government-approved redress scheme. If your agent handled your tenancy badly, including sitting on repair reports meant for your landlord, you can complain to the scheme. Here is how.

What is a redress scheme?

A redress scheme is an independent complaints service agents must join. A complaint you cannot settle with the agent directly goes to the scheme, which investigates and can order compensation or other action.

The two approved schemes for letting agents in England are:

• The Property Ombudsman (TPO)
• The Property Redress Scheme (PRS)

Your agent must belong to one, and should display which, in the office and on the website.

What can I complain about?

You can complain about a letting agent for things like:

• Sitting on your repair reports instead of passing them to the landlord
• Never following up repairs you reported
• Misleading you about the property
• Mishandling your deposit (deposit rows also have their own scheme, Tenancy Deposit Protection)
• Poor communication or unprofessional conduct
• Misstating your tenancy terms

The scheme cannot make your landlord do repairs: that is a separate legal process. But where the agent's failure made things worse, it can award compensation.

Before you complain to the scheme

First you must use the agent's own complaints process. The scheme only takes over once you have been through it and either:

• Hold a final response you are unhappy with, or
• Heard nothing for eight weeks after complaining

Step 1: write formally to the agent with the complaint in full. Keep a copy.

Step 2: wait for the response, up to eight weeks.

Step 3: unhappy with it, or met with silence? Go to the scheme.

How to find out which scheme your agent belongs to

Check the agent's website or letters: the law makes them state their scheme. Cannot find it? Ring and ask. You can also search any agency on the TPO and PRS websites.

How to make a redress scheme complaint

With the final response in hand, or eight silent weeks behind you:

1. Go to the scheme's website, TPO or PRS
2. Fill in the online complaint form
3. Attach the evidence: your complaint, the agent's response, repair messages, photos, and the tenancy agreement where relevant
4. Submit

There is no fee to complain to either scheme.

What can the scheme do?

The scheme can:

• Order an apology
• Award compensation, up to £25,000 through TPO in some cases
• Order specific action
• Refer serious breaches to trading standards

The scheme cannot force your landlord to repair. But a finding against the agent is useful evidence for later action against the landlord.

What if the agent is not a member of a scheme?

An agent outside any scheme is breaking the law. Report them to the council's trading standards team; the fine can reach £5,000.

When should I contact Support for Tenants?

We help tenants with disrepair claims against landlords, including where an agent's failure to act fed the problem.

Call us on 0800 030 4669. No upfront cost. You only pay if you win, and the fee comes out of the compensation, not your pocket. If you don't win, you pay nothing.

Sources

• Tenant Fees Act 2019 (legislation.gov.uk)
• Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, Section 11 (legislation.gov.uk)

Related articles

• Complaining to the Housing Ombudsman, step by step
• How to make a formal complaint to your landlord
• My landlord keeps promising repairs but never does them
• Trading standards and rogue landlords