The Property Lawyers Alliance has criticised proposals for the FCA to take responsibility for unfair commercial practices; outlined in the Consumer Protection Regulations (CPRs) and enshrined in the recent National Trading Standards Estate and letting Agency Team (NTSELAT) guidance.
A consultation which finished yesterday (Wednesday 23rd January 2025) invited the thoughts of professionals on draft guidance tackling unfair commercial practices (UCP) provisions in the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers (DMCC) Act 2024. These provisions replace and update the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008.
In its response to the consultation the Property Lawyers Alliance (PLA) makes clear in its submission to the CMA the it considers it would be ‘damaging to consumers, and so anti-competitive, for the panoply of existing statutory and common law protections for buyers of property, to be duplicated, undermined or contradicted, either by the UCPs set out in The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 Act, or by any future guidance published by the CMA.’
It also raises concerns about the role of referral fees in influencing consumer choice through what is described in the submission as
“‘conveyancing factories’ or ‘giants’ off the back of covert conditioinal selling arrangements, often funded by referral fees, is anti-competitive and represents unfair commercial practices for the consumer. Moreover, such UPCs discriminate against smaller law firms, which also reduces the choice for the consumer.”
Alongside conditional selling and referral fees, the PLA believes reservation agreements, often used in Modern Method of Auction should be tackled. Concluding the PLA said
“PLA considers that it would be damaging to consumers and anti-competitive, for the panoply of existing statutory and common law protections for buyers of property, to be duplicated, undermined or contradicted, either by the Act or by any future guidance published by the CMA.”
Read the formal submission in full here.
Property Lawyers Alliance is the group previously known as Property Lawyers Action Group (PLAG) and is an ‘evolution’ of the original group said founder Stephen Larcombe, opening up the group to a ‘wider, more inclusive group of property lawyers, that will support, inform, and protect the integrity of all property lawyers operating as part of the wider legal profession.’
The PLA has been vocal in its opposition to the imposition of the fifth edition of the TA6 property information form. Speaking to Today’s Conveyancer in October 2024, Larcombe added PLAG remains committed to its previously stated view that ‘material information’ is ‘misguided and potentially unlawful.’