Do estate agents have to disclose referral fees?
If you pay or receive a referral fee on a sale, your client needs to know about it. Here is what that means in practice for agents sharing fees with each other.
Do UK estate agents have to disclose referral fees?
The short version
Referral fees between agents are entirely normal, but the client should never be in the dark about them. If you are passing a seller to another agent and taking a share of their fee, or offering part of your fee to an agent who brings a buyer, the seller should know that arrangement exists. Being open about it costs you nothing and protects you if anyone asks questions later.
Where the expectation comes from
Consumer protection law treats hiding information a client would want to know as a potential unfair practice, and National Trading Standards, which oversees estate agency in the UK, has published guidance making clear that referral arrangements should be disclosed. The redress scheme codes of practice that agents sign up to say the same. The detail varies, so check the current guidance and your own scheme's code rather than relying on a summary.
What to do in practice
- Mention any referral arrangement in your terms of business or in writing before the client commits.
- Say who the fee is between and roughly what it is, not just that one may exist.
- Keep a record of what was agreed between the agents, and when.
- If you receive a referral, make sure the agent who sent the client has told them too.
On BrokerBroker every split is recorded with both agents' names and the terms at the moment it is agreed, which makes it straightforward to show your client exactly what has been arranged. This guide is general information rather than legal advice.
Where next
Come and join us.
Leave your name and WhatsApp number and we'll take it from there. A real person reads every application, and we won't leave you hanging.