Letting Agency Data protection?

G_M

LEJC wrote: »

Have your personal details and bank statement copies definitely been passed to the LL?

I can only comment on how my particular letting agent works for me as a LL....they review the prospective tenant....give me a run down and ask for a decision.
That's because that is what you've instructed the agent to do for you. Either explicitly, or implicitly.

Yes some generic details are discussed over affordability but I have never been even given the prospective tenants name prior to agreeing let alone a bank statement.

Some landlords don't get involved at all. Think overseas landlords for example. They instruct their agent to make the decision for them.

Other LLs (myself for example) only use agents to identify potential tenants (using their marketing reach), and then do the entire vetting/decision-making process themselves.

And others (like you) do something in between, intructing their agent to do some of the vetting work but leaving the final decision to the LL, based on..... whatever information that LL demands their agent provide them.

Agents often give the impression that LLs have little choice in the services they provide ("this is what we do....."), whereas in reality it is the LL who is paying, and the LL who should be specifying the service he wants.


* Letting agents: how should a landlord select or sack?

LEJC

Oh so you you mean to suggest that some LL's are influenced by hearsay and are too small minded to make an informed judgement.

And in the case of someone known from schooldays...isn't everyone entitled to grow up!

Comms69

LEJC wrote: »

Oh so you you mean to suggest that some LL's are influenced by hearsay and are too small minded to make an informed judgement.

And in the case of someone known from schooldays...isn't everyone entitled to grow up!

Absolutely. Given the costs involved when things go wrong, I would expect any professional landlord to take on board all available information.


I fail to see how they can make an 'informed' judgment when they do not have all the information. You're kind of contradicting yourself.


Yes they are entitled to grow up, but they do not have a 'right' to rent your property. Would you want to rent your house to that ex, who cheated on you? Or that mate you owes you £300 and doesn't answer his phone? or whatever?

LEJC

no ex in my cupboard and if I had been in the position to have lent someone some money and they were not answering their phone...at least I would know where they lived!

but we digress so back top the OP and their topic.

Comms69

LEJC wrote: »

no ex in my cupboard and if I had been in the position to have lent someone some money and they were not answering their phone...at least I would know where they lived!

but we digress so back top the OP and their topic.

I think you can see my point though. There's no harm in knowing who exactly is moving in.

LEJC

I see the point you are trying to make I think....I just disagree with you ...based on the type of thing you are suggesting as valid reasons to reject a potential tenant.

In the case of the OP I originally didnt understand their need to request removal of their personal information from databases etc as I was assuming that not all LL's go feel the need to know if they have a direct debit to a magazine subscription on their bank statement that would indicate they have a hobby or pastime that would prevent "a LL" renting to them.
It now possibly transpires that there could be some LL's who do infact use exactly this senario to reject...or indeed the other possibilities you suggest.

Clearly there are no set rules on what is acceptable or fair when choosing a tenant and perhaps thats what the OP hopefully now understands

I still maintain that as a LL I need to know that my tenant will be able to fulfil the contract...my judgement is not clouded by whether they are newcommers to the area or whether they once snogged someone at school....relationship or gender dislike,religious beleif,ethnicity ....where do you then draw the line without overstepping it.

Comms69

LEJC wrote: »

I see the point you are trying to make I think....I just disagree with you ...based on the type of thing you are suggesting as valid reasons to reject a potential tenant.

In the case of the OP I originally didnt understand their need to request removal of their personal information from databases etc as I was assuming that not all LL's go feel the need to know if they have a direct debit to a magazine subscription on their bank statement that would indicate they have a hobby or pastime that would prevent "a LL" renting to them.
It now possibly transpires that there could be some LL's who do infact use exactly this senario to reject...or indeed the other possibilities you suggest.

Clearly there are no set rules on what is acceptable or fair when choosing a tenant and perhaps thats what the OP hopefully now understands

I still maintain that as a LL I need to know that my tenant will be able to fulfil the contract...my judgement is not clouded by whether they are newcommers to the area or whether they once snogged someone at school....relationship or gender dislike,religious beleif,ethnicity ....where do you then draw the line without overstepping it.

That last list (in red) would be unlawful discrimination in any case, but certainly other factors I think are perfectly valid