By : 'J' Services : Letting(As a Tenant) Rent PCM : £1200 Would you recommend ? : No Postcode : E5
Nov 29, 2014
People found this helpful5
Felicity J Lord charged us over £400 for 'reference checks' 'coordinateion 'check in' service when we rented our flat through them. This is over double what we've paid before over the past 4 years in London. So as per their website and company literature we expected a quality service. However when we went to move in we found the following;
-The person 'checking us in' couldn't work the keys to the front door so buzzed all the neighbours to let us in. This meant once inside I had to wait inside the flat instead of helping my boyfriend load the removal van
-unwanted items were still left in the flat that were meant to be removed as apart of the lease agreement were still there. This included a wardrobe which we had to dismantle in order to move our own items in and leave in the hallway. Builders debris including clothing items and rubbish were left in the flat.
-The front door to the building had a smashed window and doesn't latch properly - this hadn't been fixed although it had been agree to in the lease agreement
-We were only given 1 set of keys so had to co-ordinate our arrival at the flat for the next week as FJL never followed up with the second set of keys until I chased them up.
-The condition report was incomplete and inaccurate so I had to go through and take photos myself so this didn't backfire when it was time to move out.
From the above we obviously weren't happy with the £403 service so asked for a £150 refund which would take the total fee down to £250 which is still high. The Hackney branch manager Amanda Alleyne's first response was to blame the landlord for all these things even though we had paid FJL for the services and the landlord had already forwarded me an email where he had requested FJL to carry out some the of the above work for him which had obviously been ignored even though it had been sent to 3 staff members. She was rude and scoffed at my claim that my time was wasted and the FJL incompetence lead to unnecessary stress on our moving day and the days after.
She then refused to talk to me on the phone and forward me to details of her superior so I could take the matter further. It took me three attempts to do this.
My landlord is also unhappy with FJL and had supported me in my claim for a refund.
What agent could do to change your mind?
Listened to me and understood my very reasonable request without arrogance or laying blame on everyone else.
Comments on Agent Fees
These do not at all reflect the service FJL provide, not only was the service poor and incomplete when I questioned them on it they were arrogant and defensive which I don\'t expect when paying for a premium service.
You cannot claim to provide a list of services to validate a huge fee then when these services are not delivered shrug off responsibility.
Was this helpful?:
By : Customer Relations Manager
Dec 5, 2014
Dear J Berridge
I'm really sorry to hear this. Please can you email help@fjlord.co.uk so we can look into this for you.
Many thanks
Melanie Smith
Customer Relations Manager
Browse popular links for estate agents, letting agents and properties nearby
By : 'Zanna' Services : Letting( As a Owner ) Rent PCM : £420000 Would you recommend ? : Yes Postcode : E9
Apr 12, 2023
People found this helpful0
We rented our house out through FJL for years and found them helpful, proactive and swift to sort our problems but selling through them was amazing. They worked so hard and the Branch Manager, Charlie, bent over backwards to get our sale “ over the line”. Thank you... Read Full Review
Services : Letting( As a Owner )Date: 12th Apr 2023
We rented our house out through FJL for years and found them helpful, proactive and swift to sort our problems but selling through them was amazing. They worked so hard and the Branch Manager, Charlie, bent over backwards to get our sale “ over the line”. Thank you FJL
The UK's Largest Customer Review Website for the Property Industry
Was this helpful?:
really appreciated the ...
Share On :
5 Star Review
vivien
By : 'ife' Services : Letting( As a Tenant ) Rent PCM : £1750 Would you recommend ? : Yes Postcode : E5
Mar 16, 2023
People found this helpful0
really appreciated the communication from. faisal and vivian in the hackney and stoke newington offices respectively.
Great agents with a real interest in their... Read Full Review
Services : Letting( As a Tenant )Date: 16th Mar 2023
really appreciated the communication from. faisal and vivian in the hackney and stoke newington offices respectively.
Great agents with a real interest in their applicants
The UK's Largest Customer Review Website for the Property Industry
Was this helpful?:
Experience with Felicity j ...
Share On :
5 Star Review
Charlie
By : 'Mike' Services : Online Auctions Sold price : £775000 Would you recommend ? : Yes Postcode : E8
Feb 20, 2023
People found this helpful0
So far I've had a seamless and enjoyable experience selling my property with Felicity J Lord, I had a great connection with the branch manager Charlie Saville and his team, got viewings quickly and a couple of offers within a couple of weeks, now in the conveyancing stage, highly... Read Full Review
So far I've had a seamless and enjoyable experience selling my property with Felicity J Lord, I had a great connection with the branch manager Charlie Saville and his team, got viewings quickly and a couple of offers within a couple of weeks, now in the conveyancing stage, highly recommended.
The UK's Largest Customer Review Website for the Property Industry
Was this helpful?:
I have mainly been ...
Share On :
5 Star Review
Faisal
By : 'Jacqueline' Services : Letting( As a Owner ) Rent PCM : £2200 Would you recommend ? : Yes Postcode : E5
May 26, 2022
People found this helpful0
I have mainly been corresponding with Faisal Hussain.
Faisal is very professional, approachable. I have never had to chase him up for... Read Full Review
Services : Letting( As a Owner )Date: 12th Oct 2021
Calls go to a concierge (who are delightful) - but no-one calls you back. 2 months and waiting for response from manager! Terrible service
The UK's Largest Customer Review Website for the Property Industry
Was this helpful?:
I have been waiting since ...
Share On :
1 Star Review
Amanda
By : 'Christie' Services : Letting( As a Prospective Landlord/Tenant ) Would you recommend ? : No Postcode : E8
Mar 23, 2020
People found this helpful3
I have been waiting since November for a deposit refund and we are now approaching April. My concern is less about the money now but more about the outright disregard and care given to me.
After being dealt with by the initial agent whom I had been in contact with, whom I must stress was... Read Full Review
Services : Letting( As a Prospective Landlord/Tenant )Date: 23rd Mar 2020
I have been waiting since November for a deposit refund and we are now approaching April. My concern is less about the money now but more about the outright disregard and care given to me.
After being dealt with by the initial agent whom I had been in contact with, whom I must stress was wonderful! I was then passed over to management for my refund to be dealt with. I first heard from said manager on 17/01/20 after I emailed advising my situation, I received a response saying she will need 5 working days to investigate and respond.
We are now 41 working days over that given timeframe (and that's not including Saturdays which I believe you also work).
I next emailed on the 27/01 asking for an update as I hadn't heard back in the timeframe I was told - I was ignored.
I emailed again the next day, 28/01 - I was ignored.
I next emailed on 30/01 - I was ignored.
I next emailed on 03/02 as I was still being ignored even after I was told I'd have an answer no later than 24/01.
The manager dealing with my deposit then responded on 04/02 advising she had, had a week off and would look into this over the next two days (05/02 - 06/02).
I then emailed on the 07/02 as again the given time frame had passed - I was ignored.
I next emailed on 10/02 - I was ignored.
I then rang on 14/02 and was advised said manager was literally completing my enquiry and that I would have a response by 14:00 that day, at the latest... I heard nothing.
I emailed that same day, 14/02 at 15:59 which again, was ignored
I then emailed on 17/02 - I was ignored.
I rang again on 18/02 - I was asked for the address of the property my deposit was held on. I was told the manager would speak to the agent initially dealing with me. I was told she'd be back in touch by the end of the day. Of course, I heard nothing.
I emailed 19/02 explaining I was still waiting - I was ignored.
21/02 - I emailed again, I was ignored.
10/03 - I emailed, I was ignored.
20/03 - last Friday, I rang and spoke to the agent. I was placed on hold. I was told the manager apologised for the delay but would sort it now and email me by the end of the day. I received no email, no communication, I have still heard nothing... as I previously mention, 41 days over the given resolution time.
I am honestly so shocked at how badly this had been dealt with and that of the poor care and custom service given. I really cannot get my head around how unprofessional this experience has been.
I cannot express how much unnecessary stress and anxiety has built up for me around this situation. I have never in my life made a complaint but I am so confused by how this has been dealt with, or how it has NOT been dealt with. I'm so baffled.
I simply want us to communicate and I want to explain, so there is transparency, that through being repeatedly ignored or given false timeframes of conclusion I now feel I am left with no other choice but to go to a small claims court.
Really sad and disappointing.
The UK's Largest Customer Review Website for the Property Industry
Was this helpful?:
Unimpressed ...
Share On :
1 Star Review
Annabel
By : 'ABC' Services : Letting( As a Prospective Landlord/Tenant ) Would you recommend ? : No Postcode : E8
Dec 18, 2018
People found this helpful2
Viewed a property on Thursday evening (we were the first people to view the property). We put down a holding deposit of £1000 the next day and were assured that this meant noone else would be able to view the property. We were then informed on the Monday that the landlord had received a higher... Read Full Review
Comments on Agent Fees
Agent fees are the highest we've come across so far.
Services : Letting( As a Prospective Landlord/Tenant )Date: 18th Dec 2018
Viewed a property on Thursday evening (we were the first people to view the property). We put down a holding deposit of £1000 the next day and were assured that this meant noone else would be able to view the property. We were then informed on the Monday that the landlord had received a higher offer (despite being assured that noone else could have viewed the property or put in an offer while they had our £1000).
So now we are £1000 down for 5 days and counting which is stopping us from being able to put down a deposit on any other property.
Have read similar reviews to this effect, which I wish I'd read beforehand.
Would avoid these guys at all costs.
The UK's Largest Customer Review Website for the Property Industry
Was this helpful?:
Worst experience ...
Share On :
1 Star Review
By : 'Kirsty' Services : Letting( As a Tenant ) Would you recommend ? : No Postcode : E8
Jun 13, 2018
People found this helpful2
Renting through FJL has been the most horrendous, stressful experience in my 10 years in London. So much has gone wrong it's too much to list. They have been so incompetent and unhelpful. I would warn anyone to avoid them unless you want to have the most frustrating time of your life.... Read Full Review
Comments on Agent Fees
Bad - c £500 just for reference checks and signing a lease
Services : Letting( As a Tenant )Date: 13th Jun 2018
Renting through FJL has been the most horrendous, stressful experience in my 10 years in London. So much has gone wrong it's too much to list. They have been so incompetent and unhelpful. I would warn anyone to avoid them unless you want to have the most frustrating time of your life. They're also really expensive and don't offer any customer service for the expensive fees you pay.
The UK's Largest Customer Review Website for the Property Industry
Was this helpful?:
This was the most horrific ...
Share On :
1 Star Review
Annabel
Jean
By : 'KD' Services : Letting( As a Tenant ) Rent PCM : £1516 Would you recommend ? : No Postcode : E5
May 10, 2016
People found this helpful2
This was the most horrific experience I've ever had and I lived in London for nearly a decade.
Scandalous behaviour. I kind of wish they were rude to me, at least then I would have some substance. They gave us the wrong keys, they didn't pass any communication between us and the landlord. On top of ... Read Full Review
What agent could do to change your mind?
Over four hundred pounds for showing us the flat and e-mailing us the contract? With putting us in conflict (now resolved) with landlady.
Comments on Agent Fees
Over four hundred pounds for showing us the flat and e-mailing us the contract? With putting us in conflict (now resolved) with landlady.
Services : Letting( As a Tenant )Date: 10th May 2016
This was the most horrific experience I've ever had and I lived in London for nearly a decade. Scandalous behaviour. I kind of wish they were rude to me, at least then I would have some substance. They gave us the wrong keys, they didn't pass any communication between us and the landlord. On top of it, they didn't respond to a single e-mail once the contract got signed. Jean was the one who we could actually have any conversation with but Annabel is a dead on the inside robot, who should never ever have a customer facing role. They charged us hundreds of pounds in various fees and did absolutely nothing in order to organise the handover. Both us the tenants and the landlord are very unhappy about this. This isn't the end, we'll get to you FJL, you can't get away with that you bunch of thieves. Shame on you.
The UK's Largest Customer Review Website for the Property Industry
Hi there,
We apologies for the poor experience you received with us, please email in to help@fjlord.co.uk so we can look into your experience.
Thank...
Felicity J Lord charged us ...
Share On :
1 Star Review
Amanda
By : 'J' Services : Letting( As a Tenant ) Rent PCM : £1200 Would you recommend ? : No Postcode : E5
Nov 29, 2014
People found this helpful5
Felicity J Lord charged us over £400 for 'reference checks' 'coordinateion 'check in' service when we rented our flat through them. This is over double what we've paid before over the past 4 years in London. So as per their website and company literature we expected a quality service. However... Read Full Review
What agent could do to change your mind?
Listened to me and understood my very reasonable request without arrogance or laying blame on everyone else.
Comments on Agent Fees
These do not at all reflect the service FJL provide, not only was the service poor and incomplete when I questioned them on it they were arrogant and defensive which I don\'t expect when paying for a premium service.
You cannot claim to provide a list of services to validate a huge fee then when these services are not delivered shrug off responsibility.
Services : Letting( As a Tenant )Date: 29th Nov 2014
Felicity J Lord charged us over £400 for 'reference checks' 'coordinateion 'check in' service when we rented our flat through them. This is over double what we've paid before over the past 4 years in London. So as per their website and company literature we expected a quality service. However when we went to move in we found the following;
-The person 'checking us in' couldn't work the keys to the front door so buzzed all the neighbours to let us in. This meant once inside I had to wait inside the flat instead of helping my boyfriend load the removal van -unwanted items were still left in the flat that were meant to be removed as apart of the lease agreement were still there. This included a wardrobe which we had to dismantle in order to move our own items in and leave in the hallway. Builders debris including clothing items and rubbish were left in the flat. -The front door to the building had a smashed window and doesn't latch properly - this hadn't been fixed although it had been agree to in the lease agreement -We were only given 1 set of keys so had to co-ordinate our arrival at the flat for the next week as FJL never followed up with the second set of keys until I chased them up. -The condition report was incomplete and inaccurate so I had to go through and take photos myself so this didn't backfire when it was time to move out.
From the above we obviously weren't happy with the £403 service so asked for a £150 refund which would take the total fee down to £250 which is still high. The Hackney branch manager Amanda Alleyne's first response was to blame the landlord for all these things even though we had paid FJL for the services and the landlord had already forwarded me an email where he had requested FJL to carry out some the of the above work for him which had obviously been ignored even though it had been sent to 3 staff members. She was rude and scoffed at my claim that my time was wasted and the FJL incompetence lead to unnecessary stress on our moving day and the days after.
She then refused to talk to me on the phone and forward me to details of her superior so I could take the matter further. It took me three attempts to do this.
My landlord is also unhappy with FJL and had supported me in my claim for a refund.
The UK's Largest Customer Review Website for the Property Industry
Dear J Berridge
I'm really sorry to hear this. Please can you email help@fjlord.co.uk so we can look into this for you.
Many thanks
Melanie Smith
Customer Relations...
My partner and I let a flat ...
Share On :
1 Star Review
Hawkar
By : 'Damien' Services : Letting( As a Tenant ) Would you recommend ? : No Postcode : E8
Apr 10, 2014
People found this helpful1
My partner and I let a flat through FJ Lord which was managed by their maintenance company from June 2012 – December 2013.
It pains me to have to spend the time writing this review but I was disgusted, continually shocked and frankly appalled at the level of ‘service' provided to my ... Read Full Review
Services : Letting( As a Tenant )Date: 10th Apr 2014
My partner and I let a flat through FJ Lord which was managed by their maintenance company from June 2012 – December 2013.
It pains me to have to spend the time writing this review but I was disgusted, continually shocked and frankly appalled at the level of ‘service' provided to my partner and I before, during and after our tenancy.
I will start at the beginning. We viewed a property in April 2012 and wished to take it; we were required to put £1,000 down to make an offer, which if accepted we could not get back, if we were to pull out of the deal. This is the highest ‘offer deposit' I have ever had to put down but we did as we wanted the flat. We did however request items inserted to our AST.
When it came to moving in there were issues with getting the keys and when we eventually did we found that most of the things requested in our AST had not been honoured. Our flat had not been cleaned to the extent that there was cigarette ash everywhere and the carpets had not been cleaned despite us stressing that we would only take the flat if they were to be professionally cleaned (they were stained badly and stank of stale smoke). Moreover the internal door handles were broken, something we requested be fixed, they were not fixed and for the whole duration of our tenancy we could not lock our bathroom door or even close it from the outside. The toilet seat was broken; for about the first 12 months of our tenancy we did not have a toilet seat that we could sit on. We stopped having guests to visit as they could not use the toilet; we only could because we learned to live with it. This was not a cheap flat in my opinion, it was in excess of £1,500 pcm for a 2 bedroom flat.
We spent the first 6 months of our tenancy chasing all of the above problems but it was pointless. We were told we needed to speak to the agents, who told us to speak to maintenance. We would speak to maintenance who would say someone else was dealing with our account. That person would say someone else was dealing with it. We were told that despite us requesting the carpets to be professionally cleaned this would not be honoured unless the money to pay for this came from the previous tenant's deposit. Eventually the money was deducted from the previous tenants deposit and we were then told that the carpets would not be cleaned as the flat had all our belongings in it and ‘logistically' it was not now feasible to clean the carpets. Can you believe it? The door handles were never fixed meaning we could never close and open internal doors. After 12 months of hounding we eventually had a toilet seat that we could sit on. These items are just the tip of the iceberg, the ones that have stuck in my memory more than most. What is the point of the AST if it is something that we as tenants must honour, but estate agents and landlords do not? A one-way agreement? I asked for clauses to be inserted to our contract, under the ‘individually negotiated clauses' section. I was categorically told that this could not happen (what then is the point in this section) and that our AST requirements would be honoured. I was lied to. Time and time again I was lied to.
Our mind was made up a couple of weeks after we moved in that we would leave at the end of our tenancy. I did not however expect our 18 month tenancy to be quite so full of such appalling service as it was.
Our tenancy came to and end and we vacated the property, leaving it in an unrecognisable state of cleanliness compared to how we found it. 3 weeks after the end of our tenancy we were informed deductions would be made from our deposit, did I expect anything less? And guess what, deductions were being made for all sorts of things that we had spent 18 months attempting to get fixed. It was another 5 weeks before we had any money returned. So about 8 weeks after we left the property we had 70% of our deposit returned with the remaining 30% still being withheld. I spent more hours calling and emailing the offices of Spicerhaart and FJ Lord. I was fobbed off and told contradicting things from different people on a daily basis. After 10 weeks I became more urgent, aware that we only had 3 months from the end of our tenancy to raise disputes with the TDS. Finally most of our deposit was returned but about 5% was deducted (the deduction being to fix something that was broken when we moved in). In the end we gave up.
I spent 2 years almost constantly calling and sending emails to Spicerhaart and FJ Lord for things that I should not have needed to. I wouldn't have minded if we had been poor tenants. However our rent was always paid in full and on time, we kept the property spotlessly clean and in a far superior state than it had been left for us. I had to continually battle for things that were just simply not honoured and for money that belonged to us and was owed to us.
I have rented in London for 8/9 years now and used 4/5 different agencies, all of the others have good and bad points but I would use them all again except FJ Lord and Spicerhaart.
I would advise anyone to absolutely avoid this company at all costs!!!!
The UK's Largest Customer Review Website for the Property Industry
I was charged £300 for tenant referencing and changing one name on the tenancy when I took it over from another tenant. This is three times any amount I have paid before. When I received the...
They take your card details ...
Share On :
1 Star Review
By : 'Mehmet' Services : Letting( As a Prospective Landlord/Tenant ) Would you recommend ? : No Postcode : E5
Feb 27, 2014
People found this helpful1
They take your card details before putting an offer through to the landlord and if the offer is accepted they withdraw a £1000 security deposit. This security deposit is mainly to secure THEMSELVES that you wont back away from your offer or you'll lose your deposit but don't forget, it's also... Read Full Review
Services : Letting( As a Prospective Landlord/Tenant )Date: 27th Feb 2014
They take your card details before putting an offer through to the landlord and if the offer is accepted they withdraw a £1000 security deposit. This security deposit is mainly to secure THEMSELVES that you wont back away from your offer or you'll lose your deposit but don't forget, it's also to take the property OFF THE MARKET so no one else can put an offer for it.
After months of searching for a decent property to match our needs we found one with Felicity J Lord and we made an offer to rent it. After some negotiation the offer was accepted and my £1000 security deposit was taken from my account. We were happy that our search had ended and was looking forward to get references done to move into the new property. At this point, they were waiting for us to pay the agency fees and reference fees to get references checked. I am so glad we didn't pay that straight away because it turns out we would have lost it! Here's why...
Two days later they said SOMEONE ELSE HAD PUT A HIGHER OFFER FOR THE PROPERTY AND UNLESS WE MATCH THAT OFFER WE WONT GET THE PROPERTY!
What?! How was another offer made?! Wasn't the property supposed to be off the market?! What was the security deposit for then?!
After arguing about this they simply said "the landlord has the right to change their mind and we will refund your deposit". But hold on a minute... "You said a higher offer was made so it's not a matter of the landlord changing his/her mind. Another offer was taken for the property while ours was already accepted! The security deposit was meant to take the property OFF THE MARKET and no more offers be taken for it. You have clearly violated the agreement of the security deposit" They just kept pointing fingers at the landlord instead.
They did eventually (2 weeks later) refund our security deposit but this meant that 1. We had to get back to the property hunt after expecting to move into one. 2. We had to wait 2 weeks in our search for another property because we couldn't make an offer and pay a holding deposit for another property we liked with another agent until we got our refund from Felicity J Lord. We simply had to watch properties we liked go away while waiting for our refund.
I have now found out on this site that it's not the first time they did this. Make no mistake, your deposit is to take the property OFF THE MARKET. Advertisements, online listings etc. for the property can still stay up in case your references don't pass and they have to find another tenant for the property you put your offer for and paid the deposit for BUT... THEY ARE NOT ALLOWED TO ACCEPT FURTHER OFFERS ONCE YOU HAVE PAID YOUR DEPOSIT! Yet they do accept further offers in favor of the landlord because they try to find the landlord a tenant who offers more rent, regardless of having accepted the offer and taken the deposit of a previous prospective tenant. THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE.
If you see a property listed with Felicity J Lord, there's a good chance another agent is listing the same property so avoid Felicity J Lord and go with another agent. And if not, your better off looking for another property and NOT deal with Felicity J Lord at all. If possible, write to the landlord of the property you like and let them know you're not putting an offer for it because it's listed through Felicity J Lord.
The UK's Largest Customer Review Website for the Property Industry
Was this helpful?:
Really bad experience. They ...
Share On :
1 Star Review
By : 'iamtuesdaygirl' Services : Letting( As a Prospective Landlord/Tenant ) Would you recommend ? : No Postcode : E9
Mar 22, 2013
People found this helpful3
Really bad experience. They take £1000 holding deposit off you if you change your mind for good reasons. Really upset that we won't be getting money back, but have found a much nicer place with a much more reputable... Read Full Review
Services : Letting( As a Prospective Landlord/Tenant )Date: 22nd Mar 2013
Really bad experience. They take £1000 holding deposit off you if you change your mind for good reasons. Really upset that we won't be getting money back, but have found a much nicer place with a much more reputable agent.
The UK's Largest Customer Review Website for the Property Industry
Was this helpful?:
Felicity J Lord are so ...
Share On :
1 Star Review
By : 'Frank' Services : Letting( As a Tenant ) Would you recommend ? : No
Jul 14, 2012
People found this helpful3
Felicity J Lord are so unbelievably useless, threatening, expensive and ineffective that I had to share it here in the hope that other people don't have to experience it.
Every dealing with them over the two years I have been renting (as a tenant) through them has been stressful and woefully... Read Full Review
Services : Letting( As a Tenant )Date: 14th Jul 2012
Felicity J Lord are so unbelievably useless, threatening, expensive and ineffective that I had to share it here in the hope that other people don't have to experience it.
Every dealing with them over the two years I have been renting (as a tenant) through them has been stressful and woefully bad. I should have known from the beginning that this was a disorganised, cash-crazed company - three appointments made, three times they failed to turn up. On one occasion I was told that no appointment had been made and that I was lying to them about it.
Since then, I have had to pay their extortionate fees, and receive numerous threatening letters for incorrect rent arrears - outstanding amounts as a result of Felicity J Lord not doing their paper work on time!
I cannot emphasize enough how poor their service is, and although I could continue to list their broken promises, they don't deserve any more of my time. Avoid at all costs.
The UK's Largest Customer Review Website for the Property Industry
Was this helpful?:
I cannot express enough how ...
Share On :
1 Star Review
By : 'Adam' Services : Letting( As a Tenant ) Would you recommend ? : No
Mar 28, 2012
People found this helpful32
I cannot express enough how awful my experience has been with Felicity J Lord. From the day we were meant to move in up till now 9 months later there has been nothing but problems and any attempt at getting resolutions is like getting blood out of a stone. Any kind of communication or action from... Read Full Review
Services : Letting( As a Tenant )Date: 28th Mar 2012
I cannot express enough how awful my experience has been with Felicity J Lord. From the day we were meant to move in up till now 9 months later there has been nothing but problems and any attempt at getting resolutions is like getting blood out of a stone. Any kind of communication or action from them is non-existent.
We agreed to rent our flat 9 months ago. We said on the Tuesday we would be coming to collect the keys and pay the rent/ sign the lease on the Saturday ready to move all our things. They said this would be no problem at all. Our van comes and we load up and drive to Felicity J Lord. On arrival they say that actually the contract is not ready and they have to chase up their secretary who apparently won't have it ready for a couple of hours. They also tell us that although they didn't say before, 1 of my flatmates needed a guarantor but they should be able to give us the keys and let us move our stuff in if we can get the details later. They also say that they need a reference for us but that a reference from our previous landlord would be fine. We rush off and track down our previous landlord to get a reference and my flatmates gets the details for his guarantor. We get back to Felicity J Lord a couple of hours later and they say all the paperwork is fine, although they will need a copy of the guarantors passport and a reference for them they could wait to get it later. However, the lease is still not ready and they don't expect it to be ready until the end of the day. By this time our van had to leave (luckily was my flatmates dad so we didn't get charged for all this but it was his wife's birthday and they had plans) so we had to drive back to our old place and unload the van. The next day we hired a van to come move our stuff, we called up Felicity J Lords 1st and they said that the person we were dealing with wasn't there but they had the keys and was fine to come and get everything sorted. We arrived only to be told that actually the guarantor was not good enough and that they need a guarantor to guarantee the rent for the whole flat and not just my flatmates proportion (they said they had to earn over £40,000 pa) and that actually the reference for our landlord was not enough and needed references from our employers who obviously weren't going to be able to give one on a Sunday. After much arguing we managed to agree to unload our stuff there but were not allowed to move in/have keys. We were now homeless because of Felicity J Lord but luckily our old landlord was very nice and helpful and let us stay in the old empty place an extra night even though our lease had expired. The next day we did finally manage to get the keys after finding another guarantor to step in and getting the other references they wanted. Of these 3 times we were in their office, 1 of the times there was a couple waiting to be seen in there that we spoke to and were having similar problems to us. Another time a group were in there shouting and swearing at them so I don't think we are an isolated incident.
Of course the problems didn't end there. We got in the flat and there was no electricity or gas. The flat has prepayment meters installed that had a large outstanding debt on. We called up Felicity J Lord asking them to get it sorted and to pay off the debt that has been built up. They said they needed top contact the landlord to get permission to pay of the debt. after 2 days of no electric, heating, hot water or means of cooking they suggested we call up the electric company to try and sort it as they couldn't contact the landlord. After another 3 days we paid off the debt ourselves and told them we would deduct it from the rent. After deducting the money from our rent, 3 days after our rent was due both us and our guarantors received letters saying they were taking legal action for the money we deducted. We received these letters regularly about every fortnight for 2 months until they got it sorted.
Then there was the issue that they advertised it as a flat with 3 double bedrooms but when we looked round 2 of the rooms had single beds so they promised there would be no problem getting us double beds to replace them. After a couple of months and still no sign of our double beds they suggested that we buy the beds and mattresses ourselves but we only had a budget of £150 each. This of course is not realistic so we told them we want them to get the beds themselves as they promised. We have been in the flat for about 9 months now and we still do not have our beds, one of my flatmates has just given up and bought a second hand bed himself, the other still has his single.
Other problems include the sink that was blocked when we moved in and took hours to drain the water. It took 2 weeks before we gave up chasing Felicity J Lord and just got our own plumber out.
We have now had a new major problem arise. We have black mould covering the walls in the living room, the bathroom and one of the bedrooms. We reported this at the beginning of January, it took them 2 months before we got them to send someone round to even look at it. The mould specialist that came said it was one of the worst cases he had seen. He told us that he would be recommending to Felicity J Lord that they replace the broken extractor fan (another maintenance issue we reported when we moved in that nothing was done about) and that they fit aerating bricks throughout the flat to help prevent the damp and of course clean and decorate all the mould. It has been nearly 2 months since then and they still haven't sent anyone to carry out this works and they cannot tell us when it is likely to be done.
All in all there has been nothing but grief in our dealings with Felicity J Lord and I would thoroughly recommend to anyone considering using them to think twice about it.
After the initial troubles we had 9 months ago I decided to look them up on the internet to see if anyone has had similar problems. If you typed Felicity J Lord in to Google back then the 2nd result that appeared was a link to this website (and it still is). But back then they only had 1 star and were listed on the website's home page in the top 10 worst rated landlords. Since we had these more recent problems I looked them up again but was disappointed to see they had moved up to 2 stars and way out of the top 10 worst. It seems that since I last looked on this website there have been a string of fantastic reviews saying how great they are. Now I don't know how legitimate these reviews are, they are about other branches than the one I dealt with so maybe these other branches do indeed deserve the 5 star rave reviews that they have received, but I am doubtful. I know that if I owned an estate agents that was rated as in the bottom 10 out of over 9,000 agents I would want to make up reviews to try and save my reputation. I may be wrong but after my experiences with them I am doubtful and certainly won't be using any branch of Felicity J Lord again.
The UK's Largest Customer Review Website for the Property Industry
After posting this I went back to look at their page and notice that all of their fantastic rave reviews have been featured at the top of the reviews page. I was curious about how to feature a review ...
Never before has an Agent ...
Share On :
1 Star Review
By : 'tomskipp' Services : Letting( As a Prospective Landlord/Tenant ) Would you recommend ? : No
Mar 2, 2012
People found this helpful4
Never before has an Agent taken a deposit and said "You have the flat" only to call 4 days later and say "You don't have the flat". To compound this illegality 8 days after I paid them my deposit they are yet to repay it. This agent is a total... Read Full Review
Services : Letting( As a Prospective Landlord/Tenant )Date: 2nd Mar 2012
Never before has an Agent taken a deposit and said "You have the flat" only to call 4 days later and say "You don't have the flat". To compound this illegality 8 days after I paid them my deposit they are yet to repay it. This agent is a total disgrace.
The UK's Largest Customer Review Website for the Property Industry
Was this helpful?:
Fees for moving into a 1 ...
Share On :
1 Star Review
By : 'Wish' Services : Letting( As a Tenant ) Would you recommend ? : No
Feb 20, 2012
People found this helpful6
Fees for moving into a 1 bedroom flat - £630. Will never use Felicity J Lord again once this 12 month contract is... Read Full Review
What agent could do to change your mind?
They should immediately inform you of ALL of their fees, not tell you while you are filling in an offer form. Far too much information required for guarantors, even after that they charge £30 for a further previous landlord reference and expect you to sort it out.
Wish I asked what their fees were said about Felicity J Lord
Services : Letting( As a Tenant )Date: 20th Feb 2012
Fees for moving into a 1 bedroom flat - £630. Will never use Felicity J Lord again once this 12 month contract is up.
The UK's Largest Customer Review Website for the Property Industry
Was this helpful?:
They charge staggering fees!! ...
Share On :
1 Star Review
By : 'gowger' Services : Letting( As a Prospective Landlord/Tenant ) Would you recommend ? : No
Dec 1, 2011
People found this helpful8
They charge staggering fees!! They were not up front about them at all and despite my asking them several times if there were any fees I should know about they only drop the bomb at the last minute when we are desperate to move in.
600 in total for a 1 bed flat which coincidentally is the same... Read Full Review
What agent could do to change your mind?
Not charge such insane fees, and being transparent about them from the outset.
Services : Letting( As a Prospective Landlord/Tenant )Date: 1st Dec 2011
They charge staggering fees!! They were not up front about them at all and despite my asking them several times if there were any fees I should know about they only drop the bomb at the last minute when we are desperate to move in.
600 in total for a 1 bed flat which coincidentally is the same amount as the holding deposit. Same to the landlord far as I can see.
The UK's Largest Customer Review Website for the Property Industry
Dear Gowger. I am sorry to read you have been unhappy with FJ Lord Lettings. If you would like us to look into this for you please email us at...
1 - 18 of 18 items
No fees information available
Kindly note that legally, letting agents need to publish information about their tenancy fees, government-approved redress schemes and client money protection schemes on their website and on third party websites (on which agents are listed). For properties to lease/rent in England, agents need to keep this information up to date and precise on allAgents or specify within the property description.
Complaints Procedure
No procedure set.
Last updated at 6/14/2018, 7:56:10 AM by allAgents