The Property Ombudsman Katrine Sporle has confirmed she has accepted an invitation to attend the Fair Fees Working Group in January.
She acknowledged that she was not invited to attend the first meeting of the group because she had not been at the preceding Fair Fees Forum, where the group was assembled.
She had not attended this Forum despite having been invited – and despite actually being in the same building at the time the Forum was going on.
Sporle told EYE that she was running slightly late when she arrived at the venue.
She said she had not gone into the meeting because she would have had to have negotiated a room divider.
She said: “I had another meeting to go to afterwards, with the housing ombudsman, and I didn’t want to go in and disrupt the Forum, first once and then twice.”
A blog by Sporle – her first for EYE – is published immediately below and we welcome her to our panel of contributors.
Meanwhile, David Cox, managing director of ARLA, said last night that the issue was neither about ARLA or NALS, but what is about best for the industry.
He said that ARLA will be doing everything it can to get the best possible deal for agents over the next coming months.
Comments (5)
I know its cold but I didn’t realise WE are being LEFT OUT in the cold!
Glad I switched my firm away from them last year, clearly don’t have agent’s interests at heart.
I have alway claimed they need to have their own house in order before wielding the axe on us agents!! Tried to change yesterday and was told I wouldn’t recieve back any payment on my subscription by leaving early… told it was in the small print!
I’m sorry. Ombudsman doesn’t have agents’ interests at heart?
An Ombudsman is there to adjudicate disputes fairly, not to side with the industry. That’s what an Ombudsman IS! If you changed expecting another Ombudsman to “have your interests at heart” then good luck!
Herewith a complete failure to understand the concept, operation and need for redress.
Want to shoot down the Ombudsmen? Then stand by for more Government regulation.
There again lies the issue.. “An Ombudsman is there to adjudicate disputes fairly” Poppycock! If I were to judge the TPO based on my experience with Mr Hamer, his team and his appalling failures/negligence, then I would too be demanding money from him as he freely dictated…but, somehow as like Ms Sporle we are to accept and accommodate their mishaps without question…I am ONLY suggesting that there IS alternative “Professional” Property Ombudsman’s available that we can work with. That also charge far less!