Safeagent, the UK’s largest, not-for-profit accreditation scheme for lettings and management agents, is celebrating its 25th anniversary.
Established in 1999 by the Empty Homes Agency as The National Approved Letting Scheme (NALS), its aim was to establish a single badge for consumers to look for and understand the services and protections a firm offered through adherence to strict accreditation criteria.
It rebranded as safeagent in 2019, after the name of the cross-sector campaign it launched for mandatory Client Money Protection (CMP).
It remains the only agent organisation whose sole focus is consumer protection, operating across the UK on a not-for-profit basis.
GREATEST ACHIEVEMENT
Isobel Thomson (main picture), chief executive of safeagent, says: “The same is true now as it was then – we are only as good as the agents who sign up to us.
“Reassuringly, our research shows that the most common reason for becoming a safeagent is a recommendation from an existing safeagent. Perhaps this is why the first ever agent who joined us, Choices, remains a safeagent to this day.”
CMP ACCESSIBLE
And she adds: “One of safeagent’s greatest achievements so far has been securing CMP accessible by all agents and not just restricted to those who were part of the professional bodies RICS and ARLA. It was a big step at the time, and we had to demonstrate that our offering was robust.
“Our standards are set for the benefit of the consumer, and our agents commit to those standards but we know that they also go above and beyond what is required of them.
“We are proud of our agents and what we have achieved together over the past 25 years, and look forward to some exciting developments to come.”
