Two letting agencies have been expelled from The Property Ombudsman (TPO) scheme after failing to pass on rent payments received from tenants.

The businesses were referred to TPO’s Compliance Committee, which ruled that both agents should be excluded from the scheme for breaching their obligations.

Aldous Craig, based on High Street in Thames Ditton, Surrey, was ordered to pay £8,800 to a landlord after failing to transfer rent collected from tenants. The agency did not respond to the complaint, but the Ombudsman upheld it after reviewing evidence proving that tenants had made the payments.

In a separate case, JNG Estates, located on Kirkham Street in Blackheath, Southeast London, was found to owe a landlord outstanding rental income. The Ombudsman supported the landlord’s complaint and awarded an additional £200 for distress caused by the agent’s actions — bringing the total award to £2,856.

As a result of their expulsion, both firms can no longer legally trade, due to the legal requirement for letting agents to be registered with a redress scheme. The decision is reinforced by TPO’s memorandum of understanding with the UK’s other government-approved redress provider, The Property Redress Scheme.

So far in 2025, 11 businesses have been expelled from the TPO scheme. The Ombudsman notes that its proactive compliance checks and enquiries service — which was used by over 73,000 consumers last year — has helped prevent many issues from escalating into formal complaints.

Ombudsman Lesley Horton said: “More than 99% of businesses comply with our decisions and pay awards when directed, so consumers can feel confident that where we award compensation, they will receive this.

“We work proactively to support businesses and carry out more than 2,000 compliance audits each year. There is a very small number of businesses who do not pay and as we see here, we will take further action if needed.”

All relevant bodies, including both local and national Trading Standards and property portals, have been notified as part of the expulsion process.