Belvoir Perth has been referred to the Scottish government and face losing their license to operate after being ordered to pay a couple, Keith and Kerry Legg, almost £2,000 in compensation after admitting it had failed to carry out safety checks and routine inspections at a property in Guildford the letting agency managed for them.

The matter has now been referred to the Scottish government, with a Holyrood spokesman confirming that ministers are currently deciding whether to remove Belvoir Perth from the letting register.

The agency could even be reported to Police Scotland, according to The Courier.

Keith Legg, who works as a teacher in Malaysia, told The Courier that the money has now been paid by the letting agency, but it is too little, too late.

“Their mismanagement has cost us a significant amount of money, not to mention a huge amount of stress,” said Keith.

The couple asked Belvoir Perth to arrange for the property to be re-let as soon as it became vacant, but communication was poor.

His parents, who reside in Fife, managed to get a key for the house in September and discovered it had been left in a mess.

It later emerged Belvoir Perth had missed a routine inspection and a gas safety inspection when issues might have been picked up.

Keith said he eventually arranged a meeting via Facetime with a manager who agreed to pay compensation.

When they did not receive the money, the Leggs took their case to the Housing and Property Chamber First Tier Tribunal.

It met in August and awarded the couple £1,899 compensation and told Belvoir Perth to carry out training.

However, that did not happen either. And, at the end of November, the tribunal issued a ‘failure to comply’ notice, referring the case to Scottish ministers.

“The fact they didn’t engage with the process, despite knowing what the outcome could be, shows at best sheer repeated incompetence and at worst a complete disregard for the legal process, their landlords and tenants,” said Keith, a former local councillor.

Ministers will now re-assess whether or not those that operate Belvoir Perth fit and proper.

If it finds against Belvoir, Scottish ministers can remove a letting agent from the register.

It is illegal to operate as an unregistered letting agent in Scotland.