Touting letters sent by a national chain to vendors with properties on sale at an independent rival implied that the branch had closed.

Richard Powell, of Ryder & Dutton, said he was deeply angered by the canvassing letters sent by Your Move.

He said that they implied Ryder & Dutton’s branch in Shaw, Oldham, had shut down.

He said: “Of course it hasn’t. It is still clearly open and is right opposite Your Move.”

Yesterday, Your Move head office said that its Shaw branch would not accept any instructions that came about as a result of the incorrect canvassing letter.

The touting flyer reads: “Happy with your estate agent?

“With the local branch of the estate agent you are using now closed, it may be time to take a fresh look at an alternative. Your Move have been in the area for several years, and have a great market share locally. We believe with the correct approach all homes are saleable.”

Ryder & Dutton did get a letter from Jonathan Rudd, area manager for Your Move.

The letter says: “While this leaflet makes no reference to your estate agent specifically we understand that the inference the letter makes is incorrect.”

The letter says that all properties that have been “leafleted incorrectly” will be revisited, and owners advised “of our mistake”.

The letter ends with an apology, saying: “Those of you that know my team will understand that this is a simple error rather than anything malicious.”

However, Powell said he was not satisfied by the apology.

He said: “I don’t think they should be able to get away with it by just saying sorry.”

Eye asked Your Move if it wished to comment.

The firm said: “We would like to emphasise that the mistake was a clerical error, and there was no malicious intent to deceive.

“The distributed letter was a ‘generic’ piece of literature that was accidentally sent to a number of unintended households.

“Once we realised our mistake, we took immediate steps to rectify the situation, contacting all houses affected.

“We sincerely apologise for any confusion caused either to existing or prospective vendors and, most importantly, to the affected branch in question.

“We have assured the Shaw branch of Ryder & Dutton that we will not accept any instructions resulting from these households receiving the incorrect leaflet.”