What is The Property Ombudsman & How does it benefit you?
Property Redress Scheme
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If you’ve been exploring cash buyers, estate agents or property auctions, you may have noticed a dark blue logo with a white triangle and the words ‘The Property Ombudsman’. But what does that really mean?
This logo signifies that the company is a member of The Property Ombudsman (TPO), an organisation that provides a free, impartial, and independent dispute resolution and property redress scheme. However, it’s always important to verify whether they are genuine members — a topic we’ll cover in more detail later.
If you’re looking to understand more about The Property Ombudsman and how they protect you as a consumer when using a “sell house fast” service, read more below…
Who is The Property Ombudsman?
Established in 1990, The Property Ombudsman service provides a vital scheme for both consumers and property agents, offering an impartial and effective dispute resolution process. The goal of TPO is to reach a fair and final settlement for claims made by either party, ensuring that conflicts can be resolved without the need for expensive legal proceedings.
TPO is a not-for-profit organisation that operates independently from the property industry, which makes sure that its decisions are unbiased and solely focused on consumer protection. The scheme is governed by a board of nine non-executive directors, including an independent chairperson, to ensure transparency and objectivity in decision making.
Unlike the National Association of Property Buyers, The Property Ombudsman proves an impartial dispute resolution service across the entire property sector and not just for cash buying companies.
While The Property Ombudsman is not a regulatory body, it is a government-approved scheme designed to handle disputes between consumers and property agents. This includes estate agents, letting agents and property cash buyers.
The Property Ombudsman doesn’t have the authority to enforce legal action or impose fines, but it can issue compensation awards of up to £25,000 if a claim is upheld. These awards are intended to address financial losses or other hardships caused by the actions of property agents.
How does it benefit you?
A cash house buyer, or any company that is a member of the TPO, can benefit the homeowner in a number of ways.
Selling to a cash buyer who is a member of The Property Ombudsman, offers an added layer of trust. TPO members must follow a professional code that prioritises fairness, transparency and consumer protection.
Dispute resolution
If any disputes arise during the sale process, such as issues with the offer, valuation, or terms of the sale, The Property Ombudsman provides an impartial, government-approved dispute resolution service. This can help avoid costly legal proceedings and ensures that disputes are handled fairly.
The Property Ombudsman members must inform sellers that they are free to use their own solicitors or surveyors. This is especially important when dealing with cash buyers who often offer to “handle everything” as a way to speed up the sale, which could lead to conflicts of interest or biassed advice.
Fair treatment
TPO’s code of practice ensures that homeowners are treated fairly and with integrity throughout the sale process. Cash buyers who are members of The Property Ombudsman must comply with this code, meaning they cannot manipulate or mislead sellers. This is particularly important when dealing with fast paced cash sales where sellers might feel vulnerable.
Selling a home, particularly to a cash buyer, can often feel rushed or pressured. The TPO’s code ensures that the homeowner is not subject to an undue pressure or coercion to sell quickly or at an unfair price, which is valuable for sellers who are under a lot of stress, especially in the case of inherited property, divorces or repossession.
Cash buyers who are The Property Ombudsman members are required to be particularly cautious when dealing with sellers who may be in vulnerable positions. This could involve ensuring that the seller fully understands the terms of the sale, offering extra time for decision-making, or avoiding high-pressure tactics.
For example, if a seller is under financial distress and needs to sell quickly, the buyer cannot exploit that by offering an unfairly low price or pushing the seller to sign without proper consideration.
Protection from misleading offers
Cash buyers must provide clear and accurate information regarding their offers, valuation process and timescales. This protects homeowners from being pressured into accepting lower offers or being misled about how quickly the sale can be completed.
Homeowners benefit from the guidelines that prevent buyers from making misleading offers or conducting last minute price drops (commonly known as gazundering). If a buyer tries to unfairly reduce their offer late in the process without a valid reason (results of a survey), the seller has the protection of The Property Ombudsman to seek recourse.
Vulnerable homeowners might be concerned about their personal information being mishandled. TPO members must adhere to strict confidentiality rules, ensuring that sensitive information about the homeowner or their financial situation is only used for the intended purpose of the sale and is not exploited in any way.
Transparency
All fees, charges, and terms of business must be clearly explained to the seller, including whether there are potential additional costs or changes in the offer price. This transparency helps protect homeowners from hidden fees or sudden price drops late in the process.
Homeowners are protected from hidden fees or unexpected terms. All costs, liabilities, and additional charges must be fully disclosed by the cash buyer before proceeding with the transaction. This ensures homeowners aren’t caught off guard by extra fees during the final stages of the sale.
For sellers who may not be familiar with the home-selling process or are at a disadvantage, the TPO’s code ensures that buyers provide clear and understandable explanations. This includes explaining valuation processes and timescales in plain language, so there is no confusion or miscommunication.
In-house complaints procedure
Before escalating a complaint to the TPO, the homeowner can use the cash buyers in-house complaints procedure. If the issue isn’t resolved, The Property Ombudsman can step in to review the case, ensuring that the homeowner’s concerns are addressed impartially.
Compensation
If the TPO supports the homeowner’s complaint, they can award compensation of up to £25,000. While awards over £500 are rare, compensation can cover financial losses caused by the buyer’s actions.
What is their code of practice?
The TPO covers codes of practice across a variety of different property companies including residential letting agents, residential estate agents, commercial & business agents, as well as the likes of ourselves which falls under the code of practice for residential property buying companies.
The codes of practice themselves are broken down into a few sub-sections, and we’ll highlight a few of the main points under each section, condensing some of the information:
General provisions
As a member, you need to comply with the codes of practice and relevant laws.
You also need to ensure all staff are fully aware of all aspects of the code and their responsibilities.
The service provided should be consistent with best practices, integrity and fairness. You should not be deceitful, dishonest, manipulative and involve any misrepresentation.
Customers must be treated equally.
If you are dealing with a customer who may be at a disadvantage, then you should take special care.
Confidential information should not be released for any purpose other than the consumer's given intention.
You need to keep full and written records of transactions for 6 years.
You must not bring the scheme into disrepute.
Duty of care and conflict of interest
Suitable information must be offered to meet the client’s needs and aims.
Everyone involved in the transaction must be treated fairly and courteously.
Avoid any conflict of interest at the earliest possible opportunity.
You must disclose any relationship you have with any arrangements made or recommendations for surveying, financials, conveyancing, other services or investment insurance.
The requirements of a consumer are key.
The client should disclose anything that will affect the value or saleability of the property.
Advertising for new business
When seeking new business, you must not use unfair methods.
Fees must be shown inclusive of VAT.
Independent of your competitors you must make decisions on how you advertise your fees, costs, offers and other offerings.
You need to explain fully to the client the valuation, offer and the process in which you will use to purchase the property.
Do not mislead the customer on the type of service that you provide.
Do not mislead the customer on the timescales for the sale process, giving any unrealistic timescales.
You also must not mislead on the price you are prepared to pay, how you will pay for it, how the property will be valued or train staff to use any techniques to pressurise sellers.
Do not directly or indirectly harass any person to gain agreement to sell.
If a customer asks you to stop canvassing them, you must act promptly.
Offers
At the point of offer, you need to inform the client you are a member of the TPO.
You must comply with Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations (2008) and valuations must be conducted in a property and fair manner.
Never misrepresent the value of a property.
The client must be given written confirmation of any offer or amended offer.
Do not mislead the status of the offer, such as if it’s subject to a valuation.
Any extra fees, restrictions, liabilities and charges should be confirmed in writing.
If there is a need to amend the arrangements you must promptly make the seller aware and confirm in writing.
Do not reduce the offer price late in the process without having a valid reason.
Terms of business must not only comply with this code of practice, but also the Consumer Rights Act 2015.
Terms of business should be in plain English.
Records of all offers should be kept.
Purchase
The time between accepting and exchange of contracts
You must not transfer any purchase to a third party without using a client's permission.
You must explain to any sellers that they are completely free to use their own professional advisors.
You are obliged to keep parties involved in the progress of the sale.
You must try and do everything in your power to reach the client's favoured sale dates.
The purchase funds need to be in place with the solicitor before the agreed completion date.
Fees, charges & client liability
In the terms of business, it must detail all fees and additional costs.
If you are intending to charge the client a fee for termination of sale, you must make this clear.
If you are using a tie in agreement, all the information of this and costs should be explained clearly to the client.
In-house complaints handling
You must maintain and operate an in-house complaints procedure.
If there is an appointed representative for a complaint, you must agree to deal with them.
Within 3 working days, you must acknowledge any written complaints.
You must inform any complainant who remains dissatisfied after the process, how to pursue the complaint further.
Following any conclusion of the complaint, you must state your final view and any offer made in writing to the complainant.
Referral to Ombudsman
You must cooperate with any investigation by the Ombudsman.
Comply with any award or direction made by the Ombudsman, and you must pay the complainant the amount of any such award.
Non-Compliance with code
The complaints committee (CC) will determine any disciplinary sanction in accordance with the terms.
Compliance monitoring
Any requirements in the code compliance monitoring must be complied with.
Customers must be informed that their details may be used in the survey/monitoring process, this is to ensure compliance with GDPR.
How can I find out if a company is a member of The Property Ombudsman?
You may be dealing with a company that displays the blue TPO logo across their website, but if you have concerns as to whether they are actually members you should always double-check.
The Property Ombudsman has a “Find a TPO Member” tool on their website, which lists all the active members of the Ombudsman. If the company you are dealing with displays the logo but doesn’t appear in the search, then you should speak to the Ombudsman so they can take action on the unscrupulous company.
Should I sell to a company that isn’t a member?
That’s completely up to you, The Property Ombudsman just offers you a layer of protection that you otherwise wouldn’t have. If a company you are dealing with is a member of The Property Ombudsman, they have to abide by the codes of practice that we’ve highlighted and if not you can complain.
Although as we’ve mentioned they can’t impose fines, it’s a big trust indicator for cash house buying companies like ourselves that they will not want to lose as it is indicative of a professional service.
In the cash buying industry, it’s not uncommon to encounter unregulated buyers who may use unethical tactics to secure a quick sale at a reduced price. TPO membership is a sign that the buyer follows the recognised code of conduct, which includes transparency, fairness and accountability, which gives homeowners peace of mind that they are dealing with a reputable buyer.
If something did go wrong with your house sale, selling to TPO members means you have the option to seek an impartial review through The Property Ombudsman. This is not available with non-TPO members, which you will then need to resort to costly legal action.
If I sell to a member of the TPO, am I protected?
You have a lot more protection than someone who isn’t a member, yes.
The Property Ombudsman themselves can’t force their members to pay fines, but they can order disciplinary sanctions and even remove their members, and being removed by a trusted Ombudsman would do considerable harm to the brand's reputation and customers' willingness to work with them in the future.
The codes of practice that a member of The Property Ombudsman has to follow ensures that you as a customer are treated fairly and equally throughout the process. As we mentioned, it also offers an independent form of redress, which is impartial – all of which you wouldn’t get for someone who isn’t a member of the Ombudsman.
All that being said, we highly recommend that you do business with someone who is a member of the Ombudsman if you’re looking to sell your property.
How do you make a complaint to The Property Ombudsman?
Before escalating your issue to The Property Ombudsman, you must first raise your complaint directly with the agent involved. As part of The Property Ombudsman’s Code of Practice, all member agents are required to have an in-house complaints procedure. This gives the estate agent a fair opportunity to resolve the issue themselves.
If you’re dissatisfied with the estate agent’s proposed resolution, or if the complaint remains unresolved after eight weeks, you can then escalate the matter to The Property Ombudsman. The agent is also responsible for providing clear guidance on how to take your complaint further if needed.
The Property Ombudsman highlights that the most common complaints they receive include:
Poor or incompetent service
Infringement of legal rights
Failure to follow the rules outlined in the Code of Practice and membership obligations
Unfair treatment
Other frequent areas of concern involve poor communication, inadequate record keeping and misleading marketing practices.
What is the TPO review process?
When The Property Ombudsman gets a complaint, they will notify the company and give them 21 days to submit their version of events. After that, they will allocate the case and the Ombudsman will arrive at a decision by taking into account the codes of practice, legal principles and what is fair and reasonable.
The final decision will then be made by the Ombudsman and it will include all the details of the findings and award, if and where appropriate.
What happens when a decision has been made on the case?
Once a decision has been reached by the TPO they will send this to you, the customer, and the agent, at the same time. There is then a 14 day period in which you can either accept or represent against the decision.
If you choose the latter, it will typically only affect the decision if you are able to prove there has been a significant mistake, or there is new evidence. If the agent, in turn, doesn’t respond to the decision, it’s assumed that they accept.
If they support the case, what can they do?
If The Property Ombudsman supports the complaint, then they can take action to put things right. This can be anything from a formal apology to £25,000 in compensation. They do make a point however saying that awards over £500 are not awarded very often, as usually it only goes over when there is absolutely no doubt that an agent has caused you to have a significant financial loss.
They stress that they can not make agents pay penalties or take any legal action against them, but they can be reported to the compliance committee and will take further action.
If you do not agree on the decision you can look to pursue the complaint via court, or another organisation. Accepting the decision will become binding on the business and in full settlement of the dispute, the TPO will then let the agent know who will pay within 28 days, usually by bank transfer or cheque.
If the agent is late making the payment, the TPO will remind them, and if they still haven’t paid they will inform them that we will be reporting them to the Compliance Committee.
Is The Property Buying Company a member of The Property Ombudsman?
The Property Buying Company has been a proud, full member of The Property Ombudsman since 2018. As part of our commitment to maintaining the highest standards of service, we strictly follow TPO’s rigorous Codes of Practice.
These standards ensure that transparency, fairness and consumer protection are embedded in every aspect of our business operations, providing you with peace of mind throughout the entire property transaction.
TPO membership means that any concerns or disputes you have can be independently reviewed by an impartial body. The Ombudsman is authorised to consider complaints across all areas of our services, including our cash buying division, estate agency services and property auction activities. This ensures that no matter how you choose to sell your home with us, you are always protected.
In addition to this, we have a dedicated customer service team and a specialised sales progression team that will guide you through most of the property sale process. These teams, along with our experienced property consultants, are your primary points of contact, offering support, advice and clear communication every step of the way.
All of your team are comprehensively trained to follow The Property Ombudsman Code of Conduct. Regardless of your personal situation or background, you can be assured that you will be treated with respect, fairness and professionalism throughout your dealings with us.
This commitment to ethical practice underlines our dedication to delivering a seamless and stress-free property selling experience.
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