New standards board for letting agents launched

News Category: Legal

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A new industry standards board has been established to enforce better practice among letting agents and others in charge of property management.

Arla and Rics have allied with the National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA) to create the Property Standards Board, which aims to improve the quality of service provided by the residential sales and lettings sector.

In addition to establishing new codes of practice for estate and letting agents, it will also offer information for prospective buyers and renters.

Gillian Charlesworth, director of external affairs at Rics, stated that the body has been established in response to the lack of common standards in the sector, which is currently allowing "cowboy agents" to operate.

She said: "We believe that the introduction of basic standards for all agents will provide consumers with better service and better information on what to expect from agents they come across in property transactions."

This comes after Arla last month called for more action from the government and industry to prevent rogue agents from operating in the sector.

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