P-05-734 Ban Letting Agent Fees to Tenants
P-05-734 Ban Letting Agent Fees to Tenants
This petition was submitted by Shelter Cymru, which collected 328 online
signatures.
Text of the
Petition
We, the undersigned, call on the National Assembly to urge the Welsh
Government to end the unfair practice of charging letting agent fees to
tenants.
Earlier this year Shelter Cymru campaign supporters mystery-shopped
letting agents across Wales and found that more than half (55%) are not
advertising fees on their websites as required by law. The study found that a
tenant could pay between £39.99 and £480 for the same service depending which
agent their landlord had chosen to go with.
The reality is that there is no such thing as consumer choice in tenants’
fees, and a real risk that tenants and landlords are being double-charged for
the same service. We believe that Wales should follow Scotland’s example and
ban fees to tenants. The private rented sector in Scotland is still going
strong and three-quarters of Scottish agents say the ban has had no impact, or
a positive impact, on their business.
Welsh letting agents are enjoying a business boom thanks to Rent Smart
Wales which is encouraging smaller landlords to sign up with agents. However,
extortionate letting fees are pushing tenants into debt and making it harder
for local authorities to prevent homelessness. Please act now to give a fair
deal to Wales’ growing numbers.
Status
This petition was considered completed by the Petitions Committee at its meeting on
03/10/2017. The Committee considered further comments from the petitioner and
agreed to close the petition given the intention of the Welsh Government to
legislate on this matter and congratulate the petitioners on the success of
their campaign. Full details of the consideration of this petitions by the
committee and related documents can be seen on the Meetings tab above.
It
was first considered by the Petitions Committee on 14/02/2017.
Assembly
constituency and Region.
- Swansea West
- South Wales West
Further information
Business type: Petition
Reason considered: Senedd Business;
First published: 24/01/2017