Three letting agents and a Residential Leasehold Management company have been expelled from The Property Ombudsman for failing to pay compensation.

Linda Matthews Lettings in Chatham, Kent, was ordered to pay a £1,000 award to a complainant when The Property Ombudsman supported a complaint regarding poor communication and rent payment issues. 

It is believed that the agent is still trading as it has live properties on both property portals and its website. 

Adjudication upheld all aspects of the complaint, including that the agent did not serve notice to the tenant as instructed, contact the guarantor or demonstrate that they acted in the landlord’s best interests when handling the rent arrears. 

The amount awarded reflected the distress caused to the landlord and the likelihood that they would need to seek legal advice to evict the tenant. This award has not been paid by Linda Matthew Lettings, and there are five cases of non-payment in total. 

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White Tiger Estates, located in Coventry, failed to resolve a complaint filed by a landlord where five breaches of best practice were identified. This included failure to transfer rental payments, implement a rent increase and return a tenants’ deposit in a timely manner. 

White Tiger Estates was instructed to pay £500 to the landlord after The Property Ombudsman supported the complaint.  

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A dispute involving Saint Property Services in Nottingham was referred to The Property Ombudsman. The complainant, a landlord, stated that electric works did not meet legal requirements, and the agent failed to conduct property visits or pass the legal itinerary to a new agent. 

As Saint Property Services did not supply any evidence to show they met their Codes of Practice obligations, the adjudicator supported all elements of the complaint and ordered an award of £200 to be made to the landlord. 

This has not been paid, and there are two additional cases of non-payment.  

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Balinor Group Holdings (BGH), an RLM firm based in Bishops Stortford, Hertfordshire, failed to get a deed of variation signed that the leaseholder needed in order to sell their property. 

The superior landlord of the estate was also unwilling to sign the deed for the leaseholder due to BGH’s failure to pay across ground rent. 

Despite multiple requests, the adjudicator found that BGH did not arrange for the deed to be signed in a timely manner or provide a reasonable explanation. The adjudicator noted that BGH’s director also had a controlling interest in the landlord company but could only consider BGH’s obligations as the agent. 

The Property Ombudsman supported the complaint and £500 was awarded to the complainant, which considered evidence that the leaseholder had lost a property sale where the buyers cited BGH’s poor communication as the reason for their withdrawal.  

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Lesley Horton, Interim Property Ombudsman, said: “Expulsion is a last resort and that is reflected in the small numbers of businesses that are expelled each year. 

“The figures also highlight the impact of our early enquiries and proactive compliance work in resolving issues for consumers, whilst supporting businesses to uphold high professional standards and fulfil their obligations. 

“However, these expulsions are a reminder that we take it incredibly seriously if awards are not fulfilled.” 

As part of the expulsion process, all relevant bodies, including both local and national Trading Standards have been notified, as well as all property portals.