What your letting agent does — and the liability that never leaves you
“Fully managed” manages the tenancy, not your legal position. What agents must hold, what they typically do, and the records you should keep yourself no matter who manages what.
Checked on 27 Jul 2026
General information, not legal or tax advice.
At a glance
- Letting agents in England must belong to a government-approved redress scheme, and — if they hold client money — a client money protection scheme (mandatory since April 2019)
- “Fully managed” is a service contract, not a transfer of legal duty: gas, electrical, deposit and licensing obligations remain the landlord’s
- Civil penalties and prosecutions land on the landlord, whoever was “handling it”
- Ask for a copy of every certificate as it’s produced — agents change, and their archives don’t always follow
- The coming PRS Database registers the landlord, not the agent
The most expensive sentence in property is “the agent handles all that.” Agents handle a great deal — but English law is stubbornly clear about whose name is on the duties, and it isn’t the agent’s.
What agents are actually required to have
| Requirement | What it protects |
|---|---|
| Redress scheme membership | You and your tenants get an ombudsman when the agent gets it wrong |
| Client money protection (CMP) | Your rent and deposits if the agency collapses or the money “goes missing” — mandatory in England since April 2019 for agents holding client money |
Both are worth verifying before signing — scheme membership is public, and a legitimate agent displays it.
What “fully managed” typically covers — and what it can’t
A good agent finds tenants, runs referencing, collects rent, arranges the annual certificates, books contractors and fields the 2am boiler call. That’s real value. But three things never move:
- The legal duties. The gas safety duty, the EICR, deposit protection and prescribed information, licensing — statute puts them on the landlord. The agent acts for you; the obligation stays on you.
- The fines. When a certificate lapses, the local authority’s penalty notice carries your name. “My agent forgot” has never been a defence — you chose the agent.
- The records. The PRS Database will register you and want your certificates uploaded. An archive that lives only in an agent’s filing system is an archive you don’t control.
The habit that makes agents work well
None of this is an argument against agents — it’s an argument for one habit: every certificate, report and invoice the agent produces, you get a copy, and you keep it yourself. Agents merge, rebrand, lose staff and occasionally collapse; landlords who kept their own records sail through every transition, and the compliance calendar stays yours to check in ten seconds — the deadline calculator will tell you today whether the agent is actually keeping up.
Forward the agent’s emails with attachments to KeepUp, or photograph the paper — the record builds itself, per property, independent of who manages it. If you let a few properties, that’s exactly what it’s built for.
England-focused; Scotland and Wales regulate agents differently (and more). General information, not legal advice.
Common questions
- If my agent forgets the gas certificate, who gets fined?
- You. The statutory duty sits with the landlord regardless of any management contract — you may have a contractual claim against the agent afterwards, but the penalty notice and the criminal exposure carry your name.
- What should I check before choosing a letting agent?
- Membership of a government-approved redress scheme, client money protection if they’ll hold rent or deposits, and — practically — how they hand over documents. An agent that sends you every certificate as it’s produced is worth more than one that “keeps it all on file”.
- Do I still need my own records if the agent keeps everything?
- Yes. Agents change and their archives don’t reliably follow the property. The coming PRS Database registration is in the landlord’s name, and disputes with the agent itself are precisely when you need records the agent doesn’t control.