Complaints Against Your Landlord
The Redress Scheme
If you have signed a tenancy with a Lettings Agency and
are experiencing problems that are not being resolved then
you may be able to register a complaint with a government
approved Redress Scheme.
From 1 October 2014, Letting Agents have been required to be
a member of one of two government-approved letting agency
redress schemes. If a Letting Agent doesn’t resolve your
complaint within 8 weeks, it’s likely you’ll be able to complain
to one of these schemes. This includes complaints relating to
the lettings process and the management of the property.
The two schemes are:
Property Redress Scheme - theprs.co.uk
The Property Ombudsman - tpos.co.uk
Registering A Complaint
-
Check which of the above schemes the Letting Agent is
registered with by requesting details from the Agent or by
checking online the links above.
-
Email the Letting Agent setting out your complaint. Keep a
copy of all communications.
-
The Letting Agent should investigate your complaint within
eight weeks. If eight weeks have passed and your complaint
has not been resolved to your satisfaction, you may refer
your dispute to the relevant scheme.
-
If the Letting Agent has written to you explaining that they
have completed their investigations or you have exhausted
their internal complaints procedure, you can submit a
complaint to the relevant ombudsman scheme.
What you can complain about using the scheme
- Lack of transparency about fees for tenants
- Inaccurate property descriptions
- Disputes about refunds of holding deposits taken
to reserve a property
- Inaccurate accounting and not passing your rent
on to your landlord
- Slow or poor service in managing repairs
What you CANNOT complain about using the scheme
- Complaints about University Halls or Private
Halls - these should be dealt with via the University
Complaints Procedure/Unipol Members Code
- Complaints about a landlord who manages
a property - these should be dealt with via Unipol
or Leeds City Council Accreditation Scheme where
appropriate
- Disputes relating to your arrears/damages
deposits - these should be dealt with via the
appropriate Tenancy Deposit Scheme
What happens if my letting agent isn't registered with one of the schemes?
Local Authorities can impose a fine of
up to £5,000 where a Lettings Agent or
Property Manager has not registered
with an appropriate scheme. If you
are aware of a non-registered Agency,
please contact the SU Advice Service
immediately.
For information and advice on a wide range of housing and tenancy related issues, visit the website for Shelter: england.shelter.org.uk
Contact the Advice Service