Approached by a rival agent to switch, current agent says this is illegal/unethical?

NJP1983

I've been trying to sell for around 6 months but I'm not getting much interest, and my current agent isn't doing a particularly good job. So last month I was approached by a different agent who said he could offer me a better service and at substantially less commission. As you'd expect I was very happy to switch. I'm not under sole selling rights or anything like that, so contractually I'm free to leave.

However my current agent is kicking up a fuss and claiming that it's illegal/unethical for the rival agent to have approached me in the first place and to try to steal his business. I didn't solicit the rival agent, he approached me out of the blue because he'd seen my house had been on Rightmove/Zoopla for months without selling.

Could anyone offer advice on whether this rival agent did anything wrong? My current agent is threatening to get trading standards and/or TPO involved. So, simple question really, are estate agents allowed to take business off of one another in this way? Is it legal? Is it against TPO guidelines? I've had a brief look at the guidelines but I'm not a qualified estate agents so I just want to be sure. It's very possible my current agent is bluffing. Thank you in advance, this whole situation is quite stressful.

lincroft1710

If your agent genuinely thinks Trading Standards will get involved, then he is an idiot!

NJP1983

Yeah I've looked at that part and I can't see anything that conflicts with trading standards, but I'm not a qualified agent so I don't know for sure. I think there might possibly be an issue with TPO, which is some kind of ethical standards body for estate agents.

davidmcn

NJP1983 wrote: »

I'm not a qualified agent

Do either of the agents you're speaking to have qualifications?

ACG

I do not think a company with no contract with the new compant can call trading standards? Surely there needs to have been a transaction between the 2 sides?

Either way, it is not really your problem is it? If the new agent is prepared to do something unethical and risk being reported - how does that come back on you?

Illegal? I very much doubt it. Even if it were, can you imagine the police carting away an estate agent for touting for business? Again, short of having your agent in handcuffs, how does it effect you?

If the original agent is not saying you would be in breach of your contract with them, then I would assume you are quite safe to leave or try elsewhere.

SmashedAvacado

The potential harm in this type of situation is where one party attempts to induce another party to breach a contract with a third party. This is not a crime; its an economic tort.

But based on what you have said, that would be highly unlikely to apply in this case, where it seems the rival agent is offering a service to you and you wont be breaching your contract by bringing an end to your existing agency under its terms before signing up to the new service - presumably to end your deal will require you to serve a notice.

saajan_12

NJP1983 wrote: »

I've been trying to sell for around 6 months but I'm not getting much interest, and my current agent isn't doing a particularly good job. - have you asked your current agent why they think it isn't selling? Priced too high? No market for that type of property? Pictures? So last month I was approached by a different agent who said he could offer me a better service and at substantially less commission. As you'd expect I was very happy to switch. I'm not under sole selling rights or anything like that, so contractually I'm free to leave. - check the terms of cancellation eg notice period, fees, reimbursement of their pictures etc

However my current agent is kicking up a fuss and claiming that it's illegal/unethical for the rival agent to have approached me in the first place and to try to steal his business. I didn't solicit the rival agent, he approached me out of the blue because he'd seen my house had been on Rightmove/Zoopla for months without selling. - 'unethical' on the other agent's part is nothing to do wiht you.. you're not under any obligation to market with them forever. Provided you comply with any termination clauses and pay commission as agreed (ie only if they find a buyer if thats what your contract says) then YOU don't owe them anything. Tell them to take it up with the other agent.

Could anyone offer advice on whether this rival agent did anything wrong? My current agent is threatening to get trading standards and/or TPO involved. - Still not your problem, but in an industry where sole selling / sole agency / multi agency is a common differentiator, I highly doubt TS/TPO would care about you taking on multiple agents. So, simple question really, are estate agents allowed to take business off of one another in this way? Is it legal? Is it against TPO guidelines? I've had a brief look at the guidelines but I'm not a qualified estate agents - an EA isn't a qualified EA. so I just want to be sure. It's very possible my current agent is bluffing. - indeed, TS/TPO woudl be a very long route to getting any hard commission, sounds like EA1 is just trying to scare EA2 off from even trying. Thank you in advance, this whole situation is quite stressful.

Re read your contract and then relax. If your contract doesnt' prohibit it, you can instruct another agent. EA1 can rant and rave to EA2 directly (who will probably ignore it)

NJP1983

davidmcn wrote: »

Do either of the agents you're speaking to have qualifications?

I believe so, they're both with TPO and the NAEA.

I have no idea how it'll come back to me, so I'm hesitating to sign anything with the new agent. At the very least it's hassle and will slow down the sale of my house. I just have no idea whether my current agent is bluffing about the law or ethical standards. I assumed estate agents did this kind of thing (i.e. taking business off of one another) all the time?

Comms69

NJP1983 wrote: »

I believe so, they're both with TPO and the NAEA.

I have no idea how it'll come back to me, so I'm hesitating to sign anything with the new agent. At the very least it's hassle and will slow down the sale of my house. I just have no idea whether my current agent is bluffing about the law or ethical standards. I assumed estate agents did this kind of thing (i.e. taking business off of one another) all the time?

Registration with those schemes requires slightly less knowledge than registering to vote....

hazyjo

Thought that was all part and parcel of how they worked. When we got to around 8 or so weeks on the market, we started getting leaflets from rival agents, and another knocked at the door. If we'd not accepted an offer, we might have swapped as we thought he was very keen, ambitious, and proactive.

NJP1983

Just saw that Saajan, thanks. I think the problem is my house isn't worth very much so it's a low payoff for EA1, and they're not willing to put much time into it after a certain period. But at the same time they're not happy with another agent taking it off them as they'd lose everything!

I'm not too bothered about agent qualifications, to be honest they're just marketers for property and you don't need a qualification to do that. Do people who advertise Pepsi or Coca-Cola need an industry specific qualification before they can begin working? As long as they're registered with the right redress schemes etc then I'm happy.