Queen’s Speech 2017 announces ban on unfair letting agent fees for renters will be BROUGHT FORWARD
PLANS to ban unfair letting agent fees have been brought forward it has been announced today.
Details of the new Tenant's Fees Bill were announced in today's Queen Speech.
The Queen said: "It will promote fairness and transparency in the housing market and help ensure more houses are built."
A ban on letting agent fees was first announced in the in the Autumn Statement last year by Chancellor Philip Hammond during his first-ever speech.
The government hopes that by increasing competition in the private rental sector it will result in lower overall costs and a higher quality of service for renters.
The news measures mean landlords be banned from charging tenants any fees, with the exception of rent, a capped refundable deposit and capped holding deposit.
Holding deposits will be capped at no more than one week's rent and security deposits will be no more than one month's rent.
But, government documents have revealed that the rules will only apply in England.
Letting agent fees have jumped massively in the last five years, with some people paying up to £700 in charges.
MOST READ IN MONEY
Currently letting agents are able to charge tenants fees on top of anything they pay in rent or deposits.
Under rules introduced in May 2015 estate agents must publish these in full on their websites, as well as displaying them in their offices and making the chargers clear to renters.
Vicky Spratt, deputy editor of The Debrief, who ran a campaign to end letting agent fees, told The Sun Online: "We've been waiting for today, and it's great that the Tenant's Bill was in the Queen's Speech when other manifesto policies like fox hunting or grammar schools were, notably, not.
"This is progress on renters rights and the benefits will be directly felt by millions of renters in this country.
"However, there's still more to be done and neither Brexit nor May's minority government should get in the way of that.
"We need genuinely affordable rents and secure tenure for renters, the cost of renting is way out of line with wages and the stresses this puts on people are enormous."
Other measures announced in today's Queen's Speech include extra protection for holidaymakers when booking trips, changes to the proposed energy price cap and a u-turn on a compulsory smart meter scheme.
What is the Queen's Speech?
THE Queen’s Speech is a flagship event that sets out the Government’s agenda for the next two years.
- Where? The Queen’s Speech takes place at the State Opening of Parliament.
- Who? Written by the PM and his or her colleagues, it outlines the Government’s legislative agenda for the coming year.
The event sees the Queen address the House of Lords before the Commons are invited into the chamber by Black Rod, the Monarch’s envoy in Parliament, to hear the speech. MPs then debate the speech back in the House of Commons. - What? It gives the best marker as to what policies will be pursued most vigorously and what plans will be put on the backburner.
There are also measures to help reduce motor insurance premiums by tackling fake personal injury claims and major new help for victims of domestic violence.
It's part of a new range of measures from the government to help improve Brits' daily lives.
Despite a number of manifesto pledge's today's speech didn't include promises on social care, grammar schools or the scrapping of school lunches for children.
Another notable absence was confirmation of the US President's trip to the UK.
It appears that Donald Trump's state visit has been cancelled after it was not mentioned.
Theresa May did confirm that the victims and families involved in the Grenfell tower fire will have their legal fees funded.
We pay for your stories! Do you have a story for The Sun Online Money team? Email us at [email protected] or call 0207 78 24516