Industry body calls for UK agents and landlords to respond to CMP consultation

The Association of Independent Inventory Clerks (AIIC) has called for letting agents and landlords to respond to the Government’s outstanding consultation on compulsory Client Money Protection (CMP).

The consultation was launched by new Housing Minister Gavin Barwell at the end of August and interested parties have until next week (03 October) to contribute a response.

CMP schemes protect rent and deposits held by letting agents, providing their clients with peace of mind and the opportunity to recover funds should they go missing.

Earlier this year, SAFEagent reported that one in five landlords and tenants are not protected by CMP.

A number of influential industry bodies have already shown their support for the Government’s review of mandatory CMP, including Association of Residential Letting Agents (ARLA), National Approved Letting Scheme (NALS) and the Residential Lettings Association (RLA, and now the AIIC is the latest to pledge its backing.

‘The majority of letting agents are trustworthy and reliable but that doesn’t mean that they don’t need to offer CMP. As average rents and deposits continue to rise, it’s only fair that landlords and tenants are provided with the peace of mind that their money is protected,’ she AIIC chair Patricia Barber.

‘One of the Government’s concerns is that law-abiding and conscientious agents shouldn’t have to pay the additional subscription to be a member of a CMP scheme. However, as John Midgley of SAFEagent pointed out, it’s only a small cost per year and one that the vast majority of customer focused letting agents would be happy to set aside,’ she explained.

‘What’s more, the Government itself quotes figures which suggest that up to 80% of agents are already offering CMP to their clients. This perhaps shows that the small percentage who don’t, may need to be the ones forced to join a scheme through making it mandatory,” she adds,’ she pointed out.

‘It’s pleasing that the government is reviewing whether CMP should be compulsory and we hope that as many passionate agents and landlords as possible contribute their insight to the outstanding consultation,’ she added.