Editor's note: This brief was summarised by The Property AI Team from a report by Property Industry Eye. Read the original article for full details.
TPO: Regulation and Redress Must Work Hand in Hand on Property Reform
The Property Ombudsman (TPO) has welcomed the government's commitment to introduce independent regulation of property agents, describing it as a significant moment for consumers and for the property industry. Writing for Property Industry Eye, Lesley Horton of TPO said regulation and independent redress will need to work hand in hand if the reforms are to make a meaningful difference to consumers.
Horton, who said she spent much of her career working in legal and regulatory environments, argued that regulation done properly benefits not only consumers but professionals too. She said good regulation can bring certainty, create a level playing field between professionals and give consumers confidence and assurance.
She acknowledged that regulators are often unloved institutions, treated by professionals with indifference, caution or at worst hostility, while the public can place huge expectations on them. Despite this, she said regulation presents a significant opportunity to drive improvements across a sector by setting standards for training and continuing professional development and by establishing clear expectations around professional conduct.
Consumers Expect a Regulator
Horton said consumers want a regulator in the sector, and that many already think there is one. TPO often receives feedback from consumers saying it should close an agency down or stop an individual agent from operating. Those powers are beyond a redress provider, she said, but many consumers expect TPO to act as a regulator and express frustration that there are not stronger powers where things go wrong.
She argued consumers should not need to understand the technical distinction between an Ombudsman and a regulator before they know where to turn for help. The system, she said, needs to be designed around their experience, with clear routes between complaint handling, redress and regulatory action, avoiding unnecessary duplication while ensuring information can move effectively between the different parts of the system.
Data as an Early Warning System
Horton said TPO's role gives it distinct visibility not only of complaints that become formal disputes, but of the broader range of issues consumers raise before that stage. Its Initial Enquiries function captures information about the questions and problems consumers have before making a complaint, providing a wider picture of the marketplace than complaint outcomes alone.
She said TPO is the only agency redress provider to collect this breadth of data, which can act as an early warning system, identifying emerging patterns and risks across the market and enabling regulators to target guidance, scrutiny and intervention where they are most needed.
With the government having said the future regulator will be able to establish codes of practice, Horton said there is an opportunity to ensure the new framework benefits from the evidence and intelligence TPO holds, avoiding parallel systems that do not speak to one another.
Source: Property Industry Eye