News
News

Estate agency enforcement toolkit available for trading standards

A new and innovative enforcement toolkit which has been designed to assist local authority trading standards enforcement staff to determine the levels of compliance of local estate agents has been launched.

A new and innovative enforcement toolkit which has been designed to assist local authority trading standards enforcement staff to determine the levels of compliance of local estate agents has been launched.

The toolkit, which has been launched by the National Trading Standards Estate Agency Team (NTSEAT), has been tailored with the aim to fit in with the increasing demands and workloads placed on trading standards services in recent times. It provides clear step-by-step guidance on a range of enforcement activities which officers may undertake.

From directions on how to investigate and deal with agents which have not registered with an approved residential redress scheme, to navigating a failure to display Energy Performance Certificate information, the toolkit gives helpful summaries of the relevant legislation, time-saving letter templates and penalty charge notices.

Coupled with a detailed FAQ section, the toolkit gives partner organisations explanations on some of the questions posed to NTSEAT on the subject of estate agency. The toolkit is a working document which relies on input from trading standards services to give feedback on what areas would be of the most benefit to them.

For a copy of the toolkit, visit www.powys.gov.uk/estateagency

To give feedback on the toolkit email estate.agency@powys.gov.uk or send a tweet to @tsestateagency

ENDS

Notes to Editors

About National Trading Standards

National Trading Standards delivers national and regional consumer protection enforcement. Its Board is made up of senior and experienced heads of local government trading standards from around England and Wales with an independent Chair. Its purpose is to protect consumers and safeguard legitimate businesses by tackling serious national and regional consumer protection issues and organised criminality and by providing a “safety net” to limit unsafe consumer goods entering the UK and protecting food supplies by ensuring the animal feed chain is safe. 

National Trading Standards Estate Agency Team

  • The National Trading Standards Estate Agency Team (NTSEAT) is hosted by Powys County Council under a contract awarded by the National Trading Standards Board on behalf of the UK government. NTSEAT is the lead enforcement authority for the Estate Agents Act 1979 and has responsibility for prohibiting or formally warning businesses or individuals found to be unfit to engage in estate agency work in the UK. The Team is also responsible for overseeing the UK’s consumer redress schemes and issuing guidance to businesses on estate agency work.
  • Further information can be found on their website and the team can be contacted on estate.agency@powys.gov.uk.