Dexters Estate Agents
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Not worth renting with in my opinion
I've recently rented a flat that was managed by Dexters and my experience has been deeply disappointing. My recommendations for tenants: - don't agree to a fixed term contract. I had to leave the contract early for several reasons (including Dexters poor customer service) and ended up paying over 1000£ for early termination of the contract. This was to "cover the landlord's losses", which was not true because after moving out, the rent was increased significantly, leaving the landlord with a minimum of 2000£ profit. - avoid renting with Dexters as the customer service is extremely poor in my opinion (see reasons below) - check the water pressure for hot water when viewing the flat, avoid single-glazed flats as electricity cost can get incredibly high, check the soundproofing of the flat as best as possible. In old converted houses, only opt for top floor flats. My suggestions to Dexters on how the customer service can be improved: - respond to emails within a reasonable time frame (such as 5 working days). On many different occasions I have waited for responses for several weeks (up to 24 days). Sometimes things can take longer to resolve, in which case, I suggest to be transparent with the customer and communicate to them when they can expect it to be resolved instead of leaving them in the dark. - when an employee leaves the company, make sure that their customers are informed and any outstanding queries are picked up automatically. I have once chased up information I needed for four weeks before I was told that this person had left the business. - provide information within a reasonable timeframe, such as the signed tenancy agreement. I chased for four weeks before I was sent the signed tenancy agreement with the landlord's signature. By the time I received it, I had already lived in the place for three weeks. I had also asked for the manuals of the radiators as well as the location of the right fuse box to install a smart metre. After 3 months I was told that this information couldn't be located. - resolve issues within a reasonable time frame. I waited months until my water pressure was fixed and I could take a proper shower (when turning on the hot water it would only dribble, not enough to shower). - when a customer mentions that they are unhappy with the service, don't respond by saying "we pride ourselves in delivering excellent customer service" - I have been told this on several occasions after I have raised an issue and have made it clear that I was not in receipt of excellent customer service - provide customers with information that they are legally entitled to (radiator manuals and the lease agreement of the property). After three months of chasing this up, I was told this information couldn't be located. Be better informed of ways to locate this information: lease agreements can be ordered online against a small fee and the radiator manuals can be easily obtained from the manufacturer. I managed to get hold of both documents by myself and so I am very sure that Dexters could have done the same but refused to fulfill your responsibility as a letting agent. - don't try to cover up your mistakes by being vague about information. During an outside window cleaning, my plant pot was knocked down and broke (after I offered to remove it and was reassured that wouldn't be necessary). I requested reimbursement and Dexters responded saying that the plant pot wasn't supposed to be stored on the window sill in the first place and wouldn't be replaced. I enquired where in the contract it mentioned this rule, because I wasn't aware of this. This question was ignored several times until someone admitted that this - in fact - wasn't written in the contract "but I wasn't allowed it anyways because it was a hazard". Dexters do regular flat inspections during which I had never been told that I wasn't allowed to keep plant pots outside my windows. Dexters then said that I would have to contact the window cleaners myself and after requesting their contact details, I was told that Dexters didn't have their details and the landlord wouldn't share the details with them. - pay the deposit back within the legal timeframe of 10 days after moving out of the property. My deposit was held for 27 days and it took 5 emails and several phone calls until this was paid back to me. I did not receive any communication about any deductions made either. I could go on with many more examples but there are not enough characters left to share them all, so this will have to do for now. I sincerely hope that Dexters will take this feedback to heart and that future tenants will receive better care.