Course focus: Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008

Course Focus – Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008

If you’ve been in the industry for a number of years, you will be familiar with the phrase “Property Misdescriptions Act”… you may even remember mini-prints on property details and using an A to Z to find your way to your next appointment…..! I know I do!

You may have heard of  RoPA (Regulation of Property Agents) and how regulation may be implemented in our industry in the next few years. The government’s aim is to raise the quality of advice and service to our customers, making it a more professional property sector.

The next step in regulation will be establishing a new overarching Code of Practice for the property industry. If you read the recent code of practice consultation, you would have seen a law mentioned many times…. This law is The Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008.

What does this mean for you?

Whatever your job role in property, you should be aware that anything you say or do, when dealing with a customer, has the power to influence them. So you need to bear this in mind in your role as an “expert.”

The difference between the Consumer Protection Regulations and the older Property Misdescriptions Act is that it places an obligation on us as agents, to present a full picture in relation to any property, or service we sell.

In practice, this means giving your customer enough information to make “an informed choice” when making a decision. For instance, whether to use your services (for example to sell or let a property), or deciding whether to view or offer on a property for sale or let.

Informed choice basically means giving them all the facts, both positive and negative about a property, so that they can make a decision. Moreover, failure to give this informed choice can lead to substantial fines and even imprisonment.

At The Able Agent we offer a combined approach of sales skills training and compliance training. All of which is designed to give you and your colleagues better confidence, that you are following the relevant rules, to offer the best advice to your customer.

Therefore, if you would like more information about this law and how to use this knowledge confidently to win more business, you should have a look at our Consumer Protection Regulations films and ebooks on Able Agent.

We have attached part one of three films here for you to review ….