Cost to landlords to join a COMPULSORY Redress Scheme?

Cost to landlords to join a COMPULSORY Redress Scheme?

13:32 PM, 24th January 2019, About 5 years ago 25

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On 24th January 2019 MHCLG announced that it will become compulsory for Private Landlords in England to become members of a Redress Scheme.

No dates are available yet as to when this will become law but meanwhile I have been looking into the cost implications and decided to make my membership application to the Property Redress Scheme TODAY!

The reason for that is that I have been given a discount code, which all Property118 members can use, to get 50% off the standard fees quoted below.

Entry Level annual subscription is £ 110 + VAT and an additional complaints handling fee of £110 is changed for every complaint.

Enhanced membership annual subscription is £ 199 + VAT but there are no additional complaints handling fees subject to a fair use policy.

I don’t know how long the discount code will be available, which is why I have decided to sign up today!

The discount code is: Landlord50

The link to the Property Redress Scheme membership application page is https://www.theprs.co.uk/propertyagent/register/

Reasons to join the Property Redress Scheme.

  • A quick and easy joining process
  • No Code of Practice to adhere to
  • Competitive and affordable membership fees on our models
  • Consumers must exhaust the Member’s own complaints process before contacting PRS
  • The Member has 10 working days to resolve a complaint directly before PRS become formally involved.
  • Only at this point will the Member on the Entry level membership incur an administrative fee for PRS dealing with the complaint.
  • A PRS Case Assessor will collect the evidence and try to resolve the complaint directly with the parties.
  • Only if the parties remain unable to come to a resolution will a binding decision be be made.
  • General advice and guidance available on the PRS website and by telephone/email.
  • PRS experienced and trained staff will aim to provide everyone with the best possible experience every time.
  • PRS logo provided to Members by email and window sticker to show Membership provided in post.
  • Enhanced Model members are provided with access to an independent legal advice helpline provided by Arc Legal in association with Irwin Mitchell solicitors.

I think the new legislation will help to professionalise the industry and help the authorities to root-out tax-dodgers and landlords letting dangerous housing. However, I just wish the Government would make their minds up. My preference would be for one National scheme, similar to Rent Smart Wales, and then scrap all the others such as Landlord Registration in Scotland and especially the money grabbing scams operated by an increasing number of Council’s under the badge of Selective Licensing. Maybe that’s just wishful thinking though?

UPDATE

STATEMENT FROM TIM FROM ON BEHALF OF PROPERTY REDRESS SCHEME …..

Dear Property118 members

The government have announced that landlord redress will be mandatory in the future and they will be authorising schemes to cover landlords. They are setting up a Redress Reform Working Group to look at the practicalities of implementation and we at the Property Redress Scheme will be members of this group. Once we have more information about the remit and process for authorisation for landlord redress we will make a decision on applying.

The Property Redress Scheme was set up in the summer of 2014 after obtaining authorisation from the government and National Trading Standards Estate Agency Team (NTSEAT) to allow property agents to comply with their legal requirement to join a consumer redress scheme. We now have just under 10,000 branches registered and dealt with over 1,000 complaints in 2018.

When we set up the scheme we also allowed property professionals including landlords to join voluntarily to offer the same redress service as property agents to their customers. I just need to clarify that for property professionals this is not the same as being legally required to join or complying with a legal requirement to join an authorised redress scheme.

We set up a discount code of Landlord50 back in early 2017 to test interest in landlords joining voluntarily. I understand that this code was sent to all property118 members so as a gesture of goodwill we have decided to reactivate it for one week and it will be live until 5pm on 1st February 2019.

The scheme is currently only designed for those based in the UK and our system does not accept non-UK addresses. This is something we will be looking at as part of any authorisation process for offering mandatory landlord redress.

I thank Mark for contacting us and asking me to clarify our current position with landlord redress. I will also be keeping him informed of any developments.

Kind regards

Tim Frome
Property Redress Scheme


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Comments

JC Ward

9:50 AM, 25th January 2019, About 5 years ago

I can’t see why Landlords who pay for and employ a Managing agent to manage and handle their tenants complaints have to pay an additional fee to this new Gov body.
In addition, all Managing agents maintain a register of the Landlords who pay for them to manage their property.
So sure, to protect tenants whose Landlord does not employ an agent we have no problem with an alternative registration and resolution scheme
But why are we paying twice if we are already registered with a Managing agent and who can provide all the data the Gov is intent on collecting

Mark Alexander - Founder of Property118

11:04 AM, 25th January 2019, About 5 years ago

STATEMENT FROM TIM FROME ON BEHALF OF PROPERTY REDRESS SCHEME .....

Dear Property118 members

The government have announced that landlord redress will be mandatory in the future and they will be authorising schemes to cover landlords. They are setting up a Redress Reform Working Group to look at the practicalities of implementation and we at the Property Redress Scheme will be members of this group. Once we have more information about the remit and process for authorisation for landlord redress we will make a decision on applying.

The Property Redress Scheme was set up in the summer of 2014 after obtaining authorisation from the government and National Trading Standards Estate Agency Team (NTSEAT) to allow property agents to comply with their legal requirement to join a consumer redress scheme. We now have just under 10,000 branches registered and dealt with over 1,000 complaints in 2018.

When we set up the scheme we also allowed property professionals including landlords to join voluntarily to offer the same redress service as property agents to their customers. I just need to clarify that for property professionals this is not the same as being legally required to join or complying with a legal requirement to join an authorised redress scheme.

We set up a discount code of Landlord50 back in early 2017 to test interest in landlords joining voluntarily. I understand that this code was sent to all property118 members so as a gesture of goodwill we have decided to reactivate it for one week and it will be live until 5pm on 1st February 2019.

The scheme is currently only designed for those based in the UK and our system does not accept non-UK addresses. This is something we will be looking at as part of any authorisation process for offering mandatory landlord redress.

I thank Mark for contacting us and asking me to clarify our current position with landlord redress. I will also be keeping him informed of any developments.

Kind regards

Tim Frome
Property Redress Scheme

Sata

11:40 AM, 25th January 2019, About 5 years ago

Can you confirm 100% that this will be compulsory for all private landlords even if they employ a managing agent?

Mark Alexander - Founder of Property118

11:45 AM, 25th January 2019, About 5 years ago

Reply to the comment left by Sata at 25/01/2019 - 11:40
It isn't legislation yet, so nothing is certain at all.

terry sullivan

12:23 PM, 25th January 2019, About 5 years ago

another con to create another parasitic quango--never vote tory or labor or libdim

Seething Landlord

12:37 PM, 25th January 2019, About 5 years ago

This Government announcement is about as clear as mud. It refers to joining "a" redress scheme and also to a "new Housing Complaints Resolution Service". Until that body is established and the legislation is in place nobody will have the faintest idea what landlords are required to do, whether membership of an existing scheme will suffice and if so, which schemes will be authorised.
The announcement also states "Establishing a single housing complaints service for all residents – no matter whether they rent or own their home – will prevent people from battling with their landlord or builder to resolve issues on their own and make it easier to claim compensation where it’s owed." This implies that there will only be one scheme but it might turn out that the new Service will not be a redress scheme in its own right but will only deal with appeals from other schemes.
The administrative burden of setting up a scheme, or even multiple schemes with the capacity to accomodate 5 million members is mind boggling but who am I to doubt that they have fully considered and resolved that little problem before making the announcement?
Why am I sceptical about the claim that "Dissatisfied homeowners and tenants will have simple and quick access to help when things go wrong"? Simple and quick are not words that are normally associated with officialdom.

Seething Landlord

12:57 PM, 25th January 2019, About 5 years ago

Brokenshire's statement to the House gives some further clues to the way he is thinking and can be viewed at:
https://www.theyworkforyou.com/wms/?id=2019-01-24.HCWS1272.h&s=%28rent+OR+landlord+OR+%22buy+to+let%22+OR+%22finance+relief%22%29#gHCWS1272.0

Tim Rogers

13:05 PM, 25th January 2019, About 5 years ago

I, like I imagine many others, have some properties in a company and some in my own name. Does anyone know if I need to register twice or will once do as I own the company?

Question Everything

17:36 PM, 25th January 2019, About 5 years ago

If this abolishes Council Licenses, then it would be a good thing, and if it means that tenants can't complain through the council it is also a good thing. What I don't get, is why given ALL THE EXTRA TAX we now pay why another incompetent gov department couldn't be cobbled together for job-for-lifers to do the same thing? Seriously, what has been the product for all the extra funds from us? Shelter?

10:59 AM, 26th January 2019, About 5 years ago

There is a section saying 'reasons to join' then stating it's compulsory. Which is it?

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