Estate Agent Missing Out Key Information On a Property

[adder1]

I have recently aborted a purchase for a house because information relating to the management of access to a freehold property had not been disclosed on the sales information published by the estate agent. The process took 4 months and involved solicitor fees which have been wasted, plus additional property rental and travelling to the area. The sellers solicitor was slow at producing key information and the seller also made several false comments on the property information form which added to the timescale, but I believe the start of the problem was the estate agent who did not show that the access road was managed by a third party to which an annual management fee would be paid. When we found the information ourselves, the agent said that the funds being paid went into a 'pot' to pay for future maintenance, but when we finally obtained the accounts for the management company, it became clear that the majority of the funds were for a management fee, not maintenance, 90%+ to be precise. The sellers solicitor refused to provide the contract for the management company and actually questioned our need for it, although we would have been paying them an annual fee, plus additional funds for any actual maintenance work carried out.
Has anyone progressed a complaint against an agent and what process would need to be followed. They are registered with the NAEA.
We have written to the MD of the agent, who has ignored our complaint. It took the 4 months to make an informed decision, when in fact if the management company details had been made aware at the outset, we would not have progressed the purchase in the first place because the access road was managed as a leasehold property, not a shared freehold.

[Sam101]

I am rater surprised that the MD of the estate agent ignored your complaint, as common courtesy should always be a part of an estate agents service. However, as far as I know, all estate agents have a clause on their sale particulars stating that buyers should not rely on all information and should ensure that they check all details themselves.

As you say the agent did disclose that there was a management charge and in any such situation it is essential that your solicitors seek all information that would be disclosed on the contract of sale relating to this. The fact that you did not wish to proceed with the purchase does not mean that your costs are covered. I doubt very much that this or any similar claim would be met.

[adder1]

Thank you for your reply, This is useful; just to clarify though, the agent did not disclose the information - we eventually received information from the sellers solicitor relating to the management company, but only when we had found out the situation and asked for it. The agent just made the excuse regarding what the money was being used for when we asked about it and the response was clearly incorrect. Our understanding is that an agent should present all key information that they know of, or should know of, which enables the buyer to make a suitable offer - we believe this was not done - the issues connected to driveway to the property are quite crucial to this, no?

[Sam101]

The main point being, did the agents details have any sort of disclaimer mentioned. if they did, then the agent cannot be responsible. Solicitors do often tend to take far longer to deal with queries, but as said, it is part of the hazards of property purchase that the buyer needs to be aware of. Hopefully you will find a far better property and put it all down to life's experiences.

[des8]

hmm... I think you will find that estate agents have a legal duty to fully inform advise and guide their clients through the process of buying and selling.
Some of these duties will be assumed by the conveyancers, but the EA could still be liable for damages if his failure to disclose what he knew or should have known caused loss to either party.

The Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 apply to estate agents, who must therefor refrain from misleading statements and ommissions. Small print general disclaimers are not a defence.

I'm pretty sure there have been Supreme Court rulings about this.

[adder1]

Thank you DES8, we do think there must be some level of responsibility, despite a general disclaimer; the information omitted was fundamental to the property. We have mentioned the situation to the agent who sold our house and he thinks their behaviour is wrong and suggested we made a complaint. I will search through Supreme Court rulings and see if I can find anything. Best regards.