Consultation on a draft statutory code of practice and training requirements for letting agents in Scotland

Closed 15 Nov 2015

Opened 24 Aug 2015

Contact

lettingagentregulation@scotland.gsi.gov.uk

Feedback updated 11 Jan 2017

We asked

We asked for your views on a draft letting agent code of practice and training requirement proposals for letting agents operating in Scotland.

You said

The majority of you agreed with Scottish Government proposals on the Code but requested further guidance and clarification on certain aspects. Also, most of you agreed with the Scottish Government proposals on the training requirements. See the full independent analysis of responses for more detail.

We did

We have used your responses to amend the draft letting agent code of practice and to finalise our approach to the training requirement. The Letting Agent Code of Practice (Scotland) Regulations 2016, which sets out the standards of practice that letting agents must meet in delivering their services was approved by the Scottish Parliament in February 2016 and come into force on the 31 January 2018. The Letting Agent Registration (Scotland) Regulations 2016 was made on the 20 December 2016 and is also due to come into force on 31 January 2018. It sets out the training requirements that key individuals within a letting agency business must meet to be admitted to the register of letting agents and the additional information to be included in an entry to the register and additional information applicants' will need to provide as part of an application for registration. 

Results updated 28 Jan 2016

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Files:

Published responses

View submitted responses where consent has been given to publish the response.

Overview

The Housing (Scotland) Act 2014 introduces a framework for the regulation of letting

agents in Scotland. This includes:

  • a mandatory register of letting agents with an associated ‘fit and proper’ person test;

  • a training requirement that must be met to be admitted to the register;

  • a statutory code of practice all letting agents must follow;

  • a way for tenants and landlords to resolve complaints against letting agents for breaches of the statutory Code of Practice through a new specialist First-tier Tribunal; and

  • powers for Scottish Ministers to obtain information and to inspect to monitor compliance and enforce regulatory requirements.

 

Once implemented, these will help increase the overall standards of service and professionalism within the letting industry and provide customers with an effective way to resolve complaints.

 

Part 1 of this consultation seeks your views on a draft Letting Agent Code of Practice and, Part 2, on our proposal for the training requirement that applicants must have met to be accepted onto the Letting Agent Register.

 

We have included our partial business and regulatory impact assessment (BRIA) and equality impact assessment (EQIA) in the consultation and welcome your comments on these. These will help us to understand the impact of the Code and training requirements upon business and equality groups.

 

We will use responses to this consultation to assist us in finalising a draft Code and to inform our approach to the introduction of a training requirement.

 

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What happens next

Following the closing date, all responses will be independently analysed and considered along with any other available evidence to help us produce a final draft letting agent code of practice and to determine the training requirements that will apply to those accepted on to the mandatory register of letting agents currently being established.

We aim to issue a report on this consultation process by Winter 2015.

Interests

  • Housing and Regeneration