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Haart
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Reviewed by Mark on 11th October 2010
I would not use the agent again
- Services:
- Sales (as a Vendor)
Beware Haart's Fixed Fees. This is not a unique complaint and occurs in many reviews of Haart. Like others I agreed to Haart's fees based on 1.5% of the valuation, but when the property actually sold for a lower value I didn't realise that this fee was fixed and as a result I am paying the equivalent of 1.65%. The actual form that Haart ask you to sign state that this is a fixed fee, so it is hard to challenge when you look at the paperwork afterwards in isolation. What the paperwork doesn't reflect is any conversation that has taken place and how teh fee was derived.
I am taking my complaint to the Property Ombudsman as it centers around whether Haart clearly communicated their fees and how they were calculated. My wife actuall signed the form without myself being present, but note that the agreement is binding if any of the parties have signed the agreement. I have stated to Haart that I believe that their valuation methods are as a minimum unethical for 3 reasons:
1. There is nothing to stop the Estate Agent from puposely overvaluing the property to secure a higher fee.
2. There is no incentive to the Estate Agent to secure the best possible price.
3. There is nothing to stop the Estate Agent to get you to accept a lower price just to secure the sale.
I will also be stating that there should be a clear disclaimer on the agency agreement that states ** The Fixed Fee is based on the valuation of the property and if the actual sale price is higher or lower than the valuation price the Fixed Fee will remain as per this agreement **
I am not sure whether I will be sucessful with my claim with the Property Ombudsman, but hopefully this will help others avoid this pitfall.
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Comments
Customer Relations Manager, 14th October 2010
Hi Mark
Thanks for your comments. I can advise you that TPOS will not be able to consider your complaint until you have received a Final Viewpoint from us, and I would of course be happy to review your comlaint formally if you wish to email me the details to melanie.smith@spicerhaart.co.uk
Mark, 18th October 2010
I have sent a letter directly to Haart in Rayleigh and I am awaiting a written response. I have received a telephone call from the branch, but as they were not willing to agree to lower their fee I will proceed with the complain once Haart have replied and have provided me with a copy of their complaints procedure.
Mark, 11th January 2011
This complaint is still ongoing. I have now completed 3 complaint letters and have escalated through the various local and now regional offices. I have finally received the complaint process for the property ombudsman so I am due to follow up shortly. It is certainly easier to withhold part of their fee than it is to reclaim it. The complaint responses I have received so far are pretty much in line with their general attitude, i.e. poor. They try and fob you off with poor excuses and many factual errors. The whole process is designed to make you give up in frustration. At one point they even challenged me on my 'threat' to write to Financial Mail, so I promptly sent Financial Mail copies of my correspondence in the hope that they will publish them and make others aware.