Landlord redress - levelling the playing field

The PRS is delighted to be working with the UK’s largest landlord association, the NRLA on a pilot redress scheme for members and their tenants.

Ever since the Government announced that they intended to make it mandatory for all landlords to be part of a scheme that can resolve complaints and disputes during a tenancy, the NRLA have been looking at how this will work and for it to be effective.

To this end, they have partnered up with the Property Redress Scheme and more recently The Dispute Service to set up a pilot scheme for their members.

The scheme which will be free to NRLA members, will provide a route for tenants to have their unresolved complaint dealt with by an independent third party in a confidential and non-confrontational process.

The pilot will cost neither party any fees, although it is anticipated that when redress becomes compulsory there will be a modest charge paid for by the landlord to join a scheme.

Ben Beadle of NRLA commented, “For some time, we have stressed how important it is that an effective system of redress is established to resolve disputes between landlords and tenants.

“This pilot will give NRLA members the chance to demonstrate their commitment to excellent customer service and play a pivotal part in the development of an effective redress scheme in which both landlords and tenants can have confidence.

Tim Frome, Director at HF Resolution Ltd who run the Property Redress Scheme, stated “We have run a successful government authorised redress scheme for property agents since 2014 and our dedicated tenancy meditation service helps resolve large numbers of tenancy disputes during these difficult times.  We are therefore, delighted to work with Ben and his team, to provide redress directly to NRLA landlord members and their tenants.

We worked closely with the NRLA to design the pilot and to ensure it is right for both landlords and tenants. Landlords who join us in this pilot will benefit from our experienced and qualified team, who know the sector inside out.  What we will learn from working with NRLA landlords and the experience gained during the pilot will be vital in guiding the government when they make landlord redress mandatory".  We cannot wait to get started.

Sean Hooker, Head of Redress for the Property Redress Scheme also stressed that the sector needed to take ownership of the renters’ reform agenda. “This is an opportunity to get this right before legislation is forced on landlords adding to the responsibilities they already are committed to. Those who want to raising standards, protect tenants and having a thriving sector that works for all sides, are welcoming the changes, however this is our chance to shape how it will best work and to iron out any unforeseen consequences.

Steve Harriott of The Dispute Service, who has allied with PRS and NRLA as part of the pilot explained why he is taking part in the trial. “We have been working with the NRLA on a mediation service for some time and the Tenancy Redress Service marks a major step forward in offering redress to tenants of participating NRLA landlords”.

The two NRLA partners have long pedigrees in resolving disputes in the private rental sector, with both being approved bodies dealing with tenancy deposit disputes, through mydeposits and the Tenancy Deposit Scheme as well as both setting up a mediation and conciliation service (PRS Tenancy Mediation and TDS Resolution), during the pandemic to help with the challenges of possession and arrears when the eviction ban and moratorium was in place. The Property Redress Scheme is also one of the two approved bodies which all property agents in both sales and lettings must be members. TDS has also recently been appointed as the preferred body to deal with new homes disputes pilot shortly being launched.

With such experience players on the pitch, landlords can be confident that the pilot will be a success. 

14th March 2022