OFT secures final high court order against Foxtons

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The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has secured a final High Court order against estate agent Foxtons, preventing it from using particular terms with regard to sales and commissions in its letting agreements with landlords.

Its Order follows a ruling made by the High Court last July, which hinged on whether the terms in Foxton's contacts, requiring landlords to pay a renewal commission if a tenant remained in a property after the terms of the initial lease expired, were unfair. The Court ruled the charges, while not in themselves unfair, should have been flagged more prominently rather than being hidden in the small print of the contracts. Foxtons charged 11% of the annual rent as renewal commission, regardless of whether or not it carried on managing the property once a tenant had been found. Jason ...

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