Autumn Statement: banning of letting agent fees

I'm sure, like us, you were somewhat surprised by the Chancellor of the Exchequer's announcement in yesterday's Autumn Statement regarding the banning of letting agent fees. As you may already be aware, similar legislation has existed in Scotland for a number of years.

As a result of our strong customer base in Scotland, we are very well prepared for these changes and would like to draw your attention to a number of options that we already offer to our customers north of the border. Since Scottish law precludes agents from charging fees for references, we are already able to accept online payments directly from tenants and landlords.

During the online payment process, we make it clear to tenants and/or landlords that they are not obliged to purchase their tenant references from us, and that other providers exist, but we do guarantee that our tenant references meet or exceed the standards required by their letting agent. Our experience in Scotland is that upwards of 90% of tenants and landlords will purchase from us when we're recommended by their letting agent.

We also offer agents the option to establish a full white label partnership allowing them to establish their 'own brand' referencing service.

We will be carefully monitoring the situation over the coming weeks and months to ensure we're able to continue to offer you a compelling set of referencing products that make commercial sense whilst remaining fully compliant with the new legislation.