CIELA again shrugs off sabre-rattling by PurpleBricks lawyers:
May 19, 2017
CIELA again shrugs off sabre-rattling by PurpleBricks lawyers, reiterates public request for substantiation of “completed sale” rate.
In response to this Telegraph article, PurpleBricks’s lawyers have written to CIELA for a second time claiming that the statement by CIELA Founder Charlie Wright is defamatory.
CIELA has today (Wednesday) responded (attached) to Norton Fulbright’s letter dismissing their letter as classic corporate bullying tactics with no substance and requesting clarification of the facts.
Charlie Wright said “We fully stand by our position that Purplebricks adverts are misleading because they compare its services to those of indepdent agents, and claims to perform better at a lower cost. This necessarily implies that the services are substantially similar, when in reality, nothing could be further from the truth.
But more importantly, CIELA must not succumb to such corporate tactics – bullying that almost always results in small business owners hushing up, purely due to legal intimidation. This is the kind of behaviour that corporates get away with all the time and cannot be tolerated. It breeds an environment in which only the giants with heavy resources may play, and eliminates the chance of transparency and accountability. This has an unfair knock-on effect for unwitting consumers and agents alike. We must resist such indirect market manipulation; hence CIELA’s publication of its response to Purplebricks in full.
We invite Purplebricks to refute this view with hard evidence which proves otherwise. We will not hold our breath though, as it has consistently ignored many public requests for transparency and substantiation, for obvious reasons.”
Shared by: Charlie Wright charlie.wright@ciela.co.uk
You May Also Enjoy
Breaking Property News 20/12/24
Daily bite-sized proptech and property news in partnership with Proptech-X. Why estate and letting agents must embrace innovative technology in 2025 As we step into 2025, the UK property market continues to shift, and estate agents face mounting pressure to meet the evolving expectations of buyers and sellers. The days when static images sufficed…
Read More
Breaking Property News 19/12/24
Daily bite-sized proptech and property news in partnership with Proptech-X. High street Auctions’ initiative launches to revive Britain’s town centres This month the UK Government rolls out its highly anticipated ‘High Street Auctions’ scheme, a flagship measure of the Levelling Up and Regeneration Act 2023. This initiative grants local authorities the power to take…
Read More 
Moving Up In The World: Finding Your Dream Home
Finding your dream home is one of life’s most exciting and transformative experiences. Whether you’re looking to upsize, relocate, or finally purchase that ideal property you’ve always envisioned, the journey is both thrilling and filled with important decisions. As you embark on this path, it’s essential to plan carefully, consider your priorities, and approach the…
Read More 
These cities are the keenest to move house in 2025
Bournemouth is the keenest area in the UK to move home, with 38,132 average monthly searches for moving-related topics per 100,000 residents. Plymouth is second, with 35,198 average monthly searches for moving, and Birmingham is third, with 35,181. Derry is the least keen area to move house, with only 3,170 average monthly searches related to…
Read More 
Number of rental enquiries still double pre-pandemic, as rents predicted to rise 3%
The average number of enquiries sent to agents about each available property they have to rent is still nearly double the level it was in 2019, despite improvements in the balance between supply and demand: Each available property receives an average of 11 enquiries, nearly double the 6 at this time in 2019 This is…
Read More 
Response to the Bank of England interest rates decision
Response to the Bank of England interest rates decision, thoughts from the Industry Rates were left unchanged at 4.75% MPC voted 6 to 3 in favour of holding rates flat, with three members preferring to cut rates by 0.25% to 4.5% In the near-term inflation is expected to “continue to rise slightly” The market was expecting rates to remain…
Read More