Back in July, TPO announced that George Proctor & Partners, a London-based sales and letting agent, had been ejected. The business had recommended a contractor who carried out poor works on a property in its care, and was unable to provide evidence that it had established the contractor was suitably qualified.
George Proctor & Partners had previously been kicked out of TPO back in August 2021.
An award of £400 compensation was made for the contractor failing, though TPO noted that the business was no longer trading under this name. Instead, Cook Estates Sales and Lettings had been established, and was trading from the same address.
However, in TPO’s latest update to its list of expelled agents it has added Cook Estates Sales and Lettings, noting that the firm was removed from the scheme in October. Mortgage Solutions has contacted TPO to confirm why it has been expelled this time.
An estate agency firm with a similar name, Cookestates ‒ which is also based in London ‒ has a banner at the top of its website pointing out that it has no link to Cook Estates. It signposts visitors to TPO and Trading Standards should they have complaints about Cook Estates.
Estate and lettings agents are required by law to sign up to a redress scheme, such as TPO, offering customers a route to escalate complaints.
