It is believed that Harvey & Wheeler, a long-established Dulwich estate and letting agency, is the company involved with the property at the heart of chancellor Rachel Reeves’ unlicensed home controversy, having recently advertised the property to let.
Reeves admitted last night that her Dulwich home was rented out without the selective licence required by Southwark Council, describing the oversight as “an inadvertent mistake.” The property was advertised at an asking rent of £3,200 a month while Reeves resided at 11 Downing Street.
There is no evidence to suggest that Harvey & Wheeler acted improperly or without due diligence, but the extent of the agency’s involvement cannot be verified, as it declined to comment when approached this morning by Property Industry Eye.
There is no suggestion of wrongdoing on the company’s part.
Conservative Party chair Kevin Hollinrake has seized on the controversy, resharing a tweet by the chancellor in which she publicly supported the expansion of landlord licensing rules in Leeds, her home constituency.
Reeves tweeted last week: “I welcome Leeds City Council’s decision to expand their selective landlord licencing policy to include the Armley area. While many private landlords operate in the right way, we know that lots of private tenants in Armley face problems with poorly maintained housing.”
Following the discovery of the error yesterday, Reeves reported the matter to the prime minister’s independent ethics adviser and wrote a letter of apology to Sir Keir Starmer, admitting the oversight.
After consulting the adviser, Sir Laurie Magnus, the PM said that the chancellor’s apology was “sufficient” and that no further action would be taken.
Is Rachel Reeves or her letting agency at fault for unlicensed rental property?
Could there be a silver lining to this story? Do you think the PM will realise that the laws and rules we are all expected to follow are complicated and difficult to follow, and something simple might be easier to follow?
At least we can all draft our letters:-
Dear Rachel, I am sorry but I did not realise I had to pay my tax this year. Now you have caught me I will pay up.
and that should settle any issues.
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While the landlord is responsible for applying for the licence and paying the associated fee, letting agents are legally obligated to ensure that all properties in their portfolio are correctly licensed. Therefore, agents should work together with landlords to ensure that all properties under their management comply with local licensing regulations. Even if an agent’s terms of business state that they do not accept responsibility for licensing, they could find themselves liable because they meet the Housing Act 2004 statutory definition of the person having control or person managing the property.
The last business I worked at would not have allowed the let to go ahead without proof.
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Tenant Find only service, no advice given.
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TFO? So she’s taking the calls about the boiler pressure dropping and those damp patches that appearing on the walls etc? If she’s managing it herself, I wouldn’t be surprised if some other bits have been missed too.
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I doubt she is self-managing.
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From Reddit…
It’s hard to believe Rachel Reeves MP didn’t know about Selective Licensing since a new scheme will start in her Leeds constituency in February. The Chancellor is known for campaigning for “more selective licensing” in Leeds to tackle rogue landlords, and posted about selective licensing in Leeds on Facebook 9 days ago.
The incompetence of her Letting Agency (apparently Harvey Wheeler), a Constituency MP and the Chancellor, who should know better. The agency offers 12% lettings service or a 15% (£480 per month) fully managed service, both of which include “Clarity on legal, compliance and Health and Safety matters” and “Arrangement and renewal of all legislative and safety checks” which it ultimately failed or the chancellor ignored.
BTW – who lets a house in such obviously poor condition? I particularly liked to unpainted board on the porch, presumably designed to prevent those who have overindulged from plummeting into the many dead pot plants?
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The liability depends entirely on the specific clauses within the Terms of Business between the agent and client. I presume from this comment that its author has studied these and can, therefore, speak confidently about their contents.
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Why are parliamentary heavyweights reaching out to the estate agents? Could it be that they’re trying to grease a few palms with silver — hoping someone else will take the blame for Rachel?
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While the agents have apologised for their error, the law is clear in that responsibility ultimately lies with the landlords.
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It’s interesting that Property Industry Eye reports there is “no indication of wrongdoing” by the agent.
That conclusion, however, appears at odds with most professionals’ understanding of both Nye Saunders v Bristow [1987] 1 WLR 1136 and Part A of the NTSELAT Material Information guidance.
In Nye Saunders, the Court of Appeal made it plain that a professional’s duty extends beyond following instructions — it includes a positive duty to warn a client of any foreseeable risk or legal requirement that would render the work unsafe or unlawful.
Under Part A Material Information, the existence (or absence) of a required selective licence is not peripheral detail; it determines whether the property can lawfully be let at all.
On that basis, to say there is no wrongdoing sits uneasily with the expectation that any competent agent should verify and disclose such a fundamental condition before marketing. Even if the landlord bears statutory liability, the professional duty to warn and to ensure compliance remains squarely with the agent.
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