Letting fees charged by agents to tenants have been ruled illegal in Northern Ireland.
The ruling, in a part of the UK where housing is devolved, could mean that many hundreds of thousands of pounds worth of fees will have to be refunded by agents to tenants.
The case law challenge was brought by a student tenant, Paul Loughran, and has been upheld under existing legislation, the arcane-sounding Commission on Disposal of Land Order.
In Northern Ireland, fees are not – yet – banned by statute. However, there was a consultation last year into the proposal.
Belfast County Court has ordered that letting agent F5 Property return a £36 admin fee charged to Loughran before the start of his tenancy.
The same court also ordered another letting agent, Piney Rentals, to return a £30 fee to the same tenant in December.
The judgments have now been joined, “in order to address a widespread practice”. Loughran had successfully alleged that fees were being sought not just unfairly, but unlawfully.
Claire Hanna, Social Democratic and Labour Party member of the legislative assembly, said: “Agent letting fees have been a major issue in places like South Belfast where there are a large number of tenants renting privately.
“Many of these tenants have been charged on top of a month’s rent in advance, as well as a security deposit, placing too heavy a burden on individuals and families who are often a captive market.
“The SDLP understands the private rented sector is an important part of the housing market, but there must be fairness and transparency in the process to ensure tenants are protected.
“Landlords paying agents to deliver tenancies is part of the routine letting and landlord management process, and not the responsibility of the tenant themselves – these tenant fees effectively allow the agent to be paid twice.
“The amount repayable to tenants in Northern Ireland could amount to many hundreds of thousands of pounds and we will be monitoring developments closely and supporting the organisations campaigning to ensure this practice is stopped.
“The SDLP has long campaigned for regulation of letting agents to make sure that all fees are transparent and clearly stated on websites, promotional material and advertisements.
“As a former private rented sector tenant in the South Belfast myself, and as an MLA dealing with a high volume of housing related cases, I am well aware of the pressure facing tenants, including being asked for additional fees.
“I would therefore like to take this opportunity to thank Paul Loughran for taking this case.”
In Scotland, Shelter launched a ‘reclaim your fees’ campaign after the lettings fee ban was more tightly worded under new legislation, but it is currently not known how many tenants have succeeded in claims.
In England, there does not appear to be anything that currently suggests fees charged to tenants are illegal, but a ban is due next April.
https://www.4ni.co.uk/northern-ireland-news/246677/letting-agent-fees-ruled-to-be-illegal
https://www.housingrights.org.uk/news/letting-agents-ordered-court-repay-fees-charged-tenants
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