Britain’s growing army of tenants are worried that the Government will delay or quietly drop its promise to end the scandal of arbitrary fees charged to tenants in return for… often nothing.
Chancellor Philip Hammond pledged to ban the fees in his Autumn Statement, winning praise from tenants’ rights groups and dismay from letting agents.
The charity Citizens Advice has found that one in five tenants has to pay fees of £100 or more to start and to renew a tenancy.
But for professionals renting expensive properties in London and other city centres, they can be far higher. And the chronic shortage of rental property means most have no choice but to pay.
The Government’s proposed consultation has not begun. Nor has a date been set.
Gillian Guy, chief executive of Citizens Advice, said: “The Government’s pledge to ban letting agent fees is welcome and should put a stop to private renters being ripped off.
“But it needs to be enforced sooner rather than later, or letting agents will continue to cash in while they still can.”