As long-standing professionals in the UK property sector, we’ve seen my fair share of regulatory change. But few shifts have landed with the same suddenness – and potential for disruption – as the withdrawal of the Material Information guidance this week.
Effective immediately, all previously issued guidance to help agents meet their legal obligations under the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 has been removed.
In its place, we are now governed by the new Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 (DMCC Act).
While the legislation aims to modernise and strengthen consumer protections, its abrupt implementation has left estate and letting agents scrambling for clarity.
RAISING THE BAR
Let’s be clear: the obligation to provide Material Information hasn’t been scrapped. If anything, the bar has been raised.
Under the DMCC Act, failure to provide essential information – or behaving in a way that could be considered misleading, aggressive, or unfair – could result in much more severe penalties, now enforceable by the Competition and Markets Authority.
The property sector does not resist change. In fact, many of us have welcomed the phased introduction of the Material Information guidance since its rollout began in 2023.
It offered a much-needed framework to standardise disclosures and improve consumer understanding.
Agents have invested heavily in training, process redesign, and technology upgrades to ensure they complied with what we were told was the future of property transparency.
“To withdraw that framework, without immediate replacement guidance tailored to the sector, is not just unhelpful – it’s disruptive.”
To withdraw that framework, without immediate replacement guidance tailored to the sector, is not just unhelpful – it’s disruptive.
Consumers and professionals alike are now left operating in a vacuum, expected to interpret and implement broad new legislation with little to no sector-specific instruction. That’s not how you raise standards; that’s how you create confusion.
Agents are not the opposition to consumer rights. They are the ones on the ground, navigating complex transactions and supporting buyers, sellers, landlords and tenants through some of life’s most financially and emotionally significant decisions.
They support transparency because it benefits everyone. But without clear direction, there is a risk of a fragmented approach that undermines the very consistency the previous guidance sought to establish.
UNITED WE STAND
The industry’s response has been united. From compliance officers and ombudsmen to redress schemes and professional bodies, the message is the same: agents need clear, practical guidance to ensure they meet their obligations under the DMCC Act.
In the absence of that, the risk of non-compliance – and the accompanying reputational and financial damage – rises significantly.
“Agents will, of course, adapt. Agents have always evolved with the times.”
Agents will, of course, adapt. Agents have always evolved with the times.
But we call on regulators and government to work swiftly and in collaboration with industry bodies to fill the void left by the guidance withdrawal.
Vague expectations and punitive consequences are not a sustainable path to better outcomes for consumers or professionals.
The UK property market is a pillar of the economy. It deserves a regulatory framework that supports progress – not one that pulls the rug out from under those trying to do the right thing.
