This article is an external press release originally published on the Landlord News website, which has now been migrated to the Just Landlords blog.
Tenants Ripped Off by Agents
Tenants around the UK feel cheated by their letting agents, a study has found.
Online letting agent Upad has conducted the research nationwide, with a strong focus on Scotland, where housing charity Shelter is pushing the Reclaim Your Fees campaign.
Within Scotland, letting agents cannot charge fees upfront, however Shelter have found that some tenants have had to pay for unlawful services. Thanks to the campaign, about 870 people have started off legal proceedings.1
Upad’s study questioned what the most pressing problem is for tenants and they claimed that high deposits and getting them back is one of the biggest issues.1
A substantial amount of respondents said that they had to pay a 12-month or longer deposit.1
The research found that 73% of tenants in the UK use a letting agency to rent their property, however, 93% of those feel that they are charged excessive fees. 79% also stated that the level of service they receive does not mirror the fees they pay.1
One individual claimed to have paid £444 for an extremely slow reference check.1
Upad also asked how much they paid to move into their current rental accommodation, without rent and deposits, and a proportion claimed to have paid up to £5,000.1
1 http://www.landlordtoday.co.uk/news_features/UK-tenants-feel-ripped-off-by-agents-says-Upad
