Estate agent charging buyer for ID check

GDB2222

eddddy said:

GDB2222 said:

I’m not entirely sure that I do follow that.  Customer due diligence measures sounds to me like it would refer to the estate agent's own customers, ie the sellers of the property.  

I don't think so, for 2 reasons.

1) What about the bit I highlighted in bold? It says "in relation to the offeror". 

What do you understand by the phrase "in relation to the offeror" in that context?


2) The law is much clearer once an offer has been accepted:

The Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations say:

Meaning of a business relationship

(3) For the purposes of these Regulations, an estate agent is to be treated as entering into a business relationship with a purchaser (as well as with a seller), at the point when the purchaser’s offer is accepted by the seller.

I think that you are right on both counts. 

I wonder why the government guidance is not simply crystal clear? What’s the point of it, if it’s not clear?

SonnyLumiere

GDB2222 said:

eddddy said:

GDB2222 said:

I’m not entirely sure that I do follow that.  Customer due diligence measures sounds to me like it would refer to the estate agent's own customers, ie the sellers of the property.  

I don't think so, for 2 reasons.

1) What about the bit I highlighted in bold? It says "in relation to the offeror". 

What do you understand by the phrase "in relation to the offeror" in that context?


2) The law is much clearer once an offer has been accepted:

The Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations say:

Meaning of a business relationship

(3) For the purposes of these Regulations, an estate agent is to be treated as entering into a business relationship with a purchaser (as well as with a seller), at the point when the purchaser’s offer is accepted by the seller.

I think that you are right on both counts. 

I wonder why the government guidance is not simply crystal clear? What’s the point of it, if it’s not clear?

Re: "I wonder why the government guidance is not simply crystal clear? What’s the point of it, if it’s not clear?"

I think Charles Dickens might have spotted the underlying reason:

“The one great principle of the English law is to make business for itself.  There is no other principle distinctly, certainly, and consistently maintained through all its narrow turnings.  Viewed by this light, it becomes a coherent scheme, and not the monstrous maze the laity are apt to think it.”

doodling

Hi,

From.the quoted text, the estate agent can only fail to forward the offer if they are unable to carry out money laundering checks.

Wanting someone to pay is not the same as being unable so that exception is not available to the agent.

I would call their bluff and ask for confirmation that the offer has been forwarded as per the regulations and follow up through the relevant complaints procedure if they don't play ball.

user1977

doodling said:

From.the quoted text, the estate agent can only fail to forward the offer if they are unable to carry out money laundering checks.

Wanting someone to pay is not the same as being unable so that exception is not available to the agent.

I would call their bluff and ask for confirmation that the offer has been forwarded as per the regulations and follow up through the relevant complaints procedure if they don't play ball.

They don't need to forward offers if they've already agreed something else with their client. It's not beyond the realms of possibility that their contract says they're not forwarding offers unless the bidders have stumped up their £60.

GDB2222

Just go round to the house and drop a letter in. 

davisaj22

Hi all, thanks for the replies.

just to confirm the offer has been forwarded to the seller and it’s been accepted, but the EA want me to pay £60 per person for conducting an AML and identity check. 

I emailed my solicitor and asked if they had a view. They stated they couldn’t comment on estate agent processes.

I’ve pushed back to the agent and said it’s excessive and that surely conducting such checks which I agree are entirely necessary could be conducted in a much cheaper way. The agent is going to speak to the boss tomorrow.

we will see!

Taiko

Thankfully, you won't be a successful buyer until completion, at which point you'd no longer need to buy the checks as your solicitor would've done them, surely? 

DiyVirgin

Hi, I was wondering if @davisaj22 got around this fee with the EA?

Myself and my husband are going to view a property on Friday which isn't yet being advertised online but other adds for this EA talk about a non refundable £60 fee for ID Checks.

We recently had ID checks done with our mortgage broker and would expect them with our solicitors too so dont really fancy paying an EA to do this as well and especially at that sort of price.

matthew91822

I assume this is Leaders estate agents. They had the same with £60 check. I recently put 3 offers in with them (all rejected in the end), so I guess you won't have to pay it until an accepted offer. 

It's purely a money making thing for them. They're a EA known for little things like this, as LA they have the 0% deposit option for tenants and its an absolute scam.

canaldumidi

Seems very cheeky.

I had an offer accepted couple of weeks back. Prior to offer being forwarded, no checks.

After acceptance, EA asked for my date of birth, presumably to do some kind of ID check.

Sorted.