Does Your Agent Actually Have Permission to Act for You?

Glendale & Cheviot · July 2026 · 4-minute read

Plenty of sellers assume that once an agent has the keys, everything the agent does is authorised. The paperwork — if you can find it — often says something narrower.

Estate agents in the UK act under an agency agreement — and the detail of that document decides what they may actually do in your name. Sole agency or sole selling rights? Fixed term or rolling? Can they accept an offer subject to contract on your behalf, or only pass offers to you? Under the Estate Agents Act 1979 and the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations, agents have real legal duties here — including telling you their terms in writing before you're committed, and passing on offers promptly.

Where it goes wrong

Problems almost never come from villainy. They come from vagueness: verbal add-ons that were never written down, a tie-in period nobody mentioned, marketing that started before terms were agreed, or a "we assumed you'd be happy with that" decision you heard about afterwards. If you can't point to the clause, the authority is assumption — and assumptions are where disputes live.

Three questions worth asking any agent

• "Exactly what does this agreement authorise you to do without checking with me first?"
• "How long am I tied in, and what does it cost to leave?"
• "Will every offer reach me in writing, promptly — including the low ones?"

Our answer to the last one, for the record: yes, always, the same day — it's your house, and legally your decision. Our agreement is one page, in plain English, with no tie-in beyond the marketing period you choose.

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