In order for an Estate or Letting Agent to have a membership with us, they need to be registered with a Governing Body. This article will explain who the Governing Bodies are, and when we signpost to them.



Who are Governing Bodies?

There are 2 Governing Bodies in the UK, The Property Ombudsman and The Property Redress Scheme which all property agents have a legal responsibility to be members of. 


Both organisations provide an impartial service for consumer and agent disputes (this might be a clue as to when we recommend them). They advise that a consumer must go through the agents own in house complaints procedure initially and, if the outcome of their complaint is not satisfactory, they can then escalate it to them.


When and what do we recommend them for?

We are the UK's number 1 property portal at Rightmove, so it's not uncommon for consumers to contact us when they have a complaint about the service they've received from an agent. 


Because we allow agents to market their properties with us, many consumers are under the impression that we have control over an agent's level of service and how they choose to operate their business. This isn't the case as we're not a Governing Body ourselves, we cannot get involved in a dispute between a consumer and an agent.


If a consumer contacts us with a complaint relating to the service they've received from an agent, we will signpost them to the appropriate Governing Body. They can also contact their local Trading Standards office if they wish to.


Please keep in mind that if a consumer's complaint is about the way in which a property is listed on Rightmove, this will need to be raised with the Data Quality Team. Although we don't have control over an agent's service or how their business is operated, we do have control over what's on our website.


How do I know which Governing Body to recommend?

It will depend on which Governing Body the agent is registered with as to who the consumer needs to contact. To help them approach the right one, we can search the member's list on the Governing Bodies website to see if the agent in question is registered with them. These are linked below.

Websites:


The Property Ombudsman: https://www.tpos.co.uk/find-a-member

The Property Redress Scheme: https://www.theprs.co.uk/consumer/members/


Each website has an online complaints form which we can share with consumers to help them get started. These are linked below along with the phone numbers for both Governing Bodies.

Phone Numbers:


The Property Ombudsman: https://selfserve.tpos.co.uk/ - 01722 333306

The Property Redress Scheme: https://www.theprs.co.uk/Complain - 0333 321 9418