From the CPRs to the DMCC Act: What Agents Must Get Right in Listings

Marketing a property is a regulated activity — and the rules changed. On 6 April 2025 the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 (the "CPRs") were replaced by the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 (the DMCC Act). The substance is familiar — don't mislead — but enforcement has real teeth now: the CMA can fine businesses directly, up to 10% of global turnover, without going to court first. Here's what every agent and landlord should understand in 2026.

The core rule

A listing must not mislead, by what it says, by what it omits, or by the overall impression it creates. That last part matters: a technically true description can still breach the rules if it leaves a buyer with a false impression.

Material information

The old Trading Standards (NTSELAT) Parts A/B/C guidance was formally withdrawn when the DMCC Act took over, and the CMA has yet to publish sector-specific replacement guidance — but in practice the industry still treats Parts A/B/C as the benchmark: tenure, price, council tax band, and for lettings the deposit. Beyond the mandatory fields, material information is anything that would affect a buyer's transactional decision: known structural issues, restrictive covenants, flood risk, short leases, or non-standard construction. If it would change someone's mind, it's material — and omitting it can be a misleading omission.

Where listings go wrong

• Inventing or guessing facts — "approximately 1,200 sq ft" when nobody measured it.
• Unverified proximity claims — "moments from the station" or "in the catchment for an outstanding school".
• AI-added embellishments — generic AI tools happily invent a "south-facing garden" or "sought-after location" you never mentioned. You publish it, you own it.
• Photos that mislead — wide-angle distortion or images that hide a defect.
• Hiding the downside — omitting a known problem because it's inconvenient.

Who is responsible

The agent publishing the listing is responsible — you can't fully delegate that to the seller's word, or to an AI tool. Reasonable steps and due diligence are your defence, so keep a record of where each material fact came from.

A safe workflow

Write from verified facts only. If a detail isn't confirmed, either confirm it or leave it out. This is exactly why a fact-driven approach to copy matters: a tool that writes only from the details you enter — and never embellishes — keeps your marketing on the right side of the line, while you still review every word before it goes live.

This article is general information, not legal advice. For specific cases, consult a solicitor or your redress scheme.