Flintons 

This agency specialises in the art of ripping off their tenants (not sure how landlords feel about them).
Though Flintons is not as infamous as its predecessor so far, Citiside. Now apparently they are not related, though the same address, decor and personnel, as well as the exact same practices, tend to indicate the opposite, I won’t assume they are related and will not concentrate on describing my experience with Flinton’s only.

Counting on the fact that most of their tenants are young students and foreigners spending just a few months in London, and not willing to spend days on administrative duty, they always use the same strategy:

1. They advertise properties in highly demanded areas where they have nothing to rent, to get the customers inside their wall and make them believe that they need to act quickly as the best properties go fast. Their strength? Minimum administrative work, just sign and pay and you're good to go, who needs a background check?

2. They force you to sign a contract without seeing the property as 'the market is moving very fast' (see 1.). They include a guarantee that you can change property in case you're not satisfied, not mentioning that none of their property will be even close to what they advertised.

3. They obviously never go with you to the property as it would mean be there for you to complain, which also means that you will never have an inventory made at your entry (this will be used later).

4. Once you moved into that sh**ty place of theirs, and have left your fighting spirit behind, they will make damn sure to never answer any one of your queries and never make any repair to the apartment. Those broken things you mentioned upon arrival? Don't worry, they won't forget to include them in your final settlement when you want your deposit back.

5. You've finally reached the end of your contract and feel the freedom of finally leaving this amazing agency? Don't worry, the adventure is not over: first, you'll have to pay £85 for leaving, not sure what they're used for but let's admit it's written in the contract.

Then? Wait 5-6 weeks to receive a final settlement, which will contain repair costs for all the things you've mentioned when entering the place, and probably some other unreasonable costs. Most people, especially those foreigners who've left the UK, will just abandon and accept a poor settlement, that's what they're counting on.

This review relates to a property in Brick Lane, advertised as recently refurbished with 4 rooms and 2 baths. Property is actually 5 rooms and 1 functional bathroom as the second one never worked and was never repaired. Most of the furniture was old and dirty, some with holes inside or already broken, things that they will ask you to pay for when leaving. The agent also quite often forgot to pay for the bills, meaning it was no surprise to receive final warnings in the mailbox or to be cut off the internet straight away.

AVOID ANY BUSINESS WITH FLINTONS.

We are a couple and we had a very BAD experience with flintons agency,the WORST ever!! Not professional and honest at all!!
We basically paid for a deposit for a double room so this room was supposed to be reserved for us,but when we came back to the agency they told us that they rent our room!! So we let them find another room for us cause they had our deposit of 300£ but the same thing happen again and they went on like this for 4 times!! They did t find any room for us!! At the end,after 2 week,we ask for refund that just came back after 8 days from the last time we have been there,but they weren’t happy to give us the money back and they were also very rude!! They made us waste a lot of time!! This agency and the way they work is just RIDICULOUS!! I m so upset that people like them can work with customers!! Be carefull because they just take your money without show you any rooms!!

I have been scammed by Flintons agency and lost quite a lot of money. I suggest contacting The Property Ombudsman straight away ( 01722 333306 ). Contact Auction Fraud too as they are already investigating the case (and the more proofs of fraudulent actions they have the quicker Flintons will be punished). Don't talk with the agents as they will treat you with disrespect and try to get rid of you. Instead, you need to email Flintons manager Gonzalo (gonzalo at flintons.com) to follow their internal complaints procedure (it has to be recorded by letters or emails). The most important is to be persistent and go to the agency and demand to speak with the manager and demand your money back. Prepare all the proofs (photos etc.) A good advice is to tell all the customers at the agency about your bad experience as Flintons will try to avoid losing new customers. Contact the officers at Tower Hamlets Council / Environmental Health / Trading Standards. Please remember you have to visit Flintons personally as often as possible as they will ignore your emails/letters for sure. If you follow this procedure there is a high chance to get your money back.

Awful service. The agent didn't pop up or pick up the phone.

Scammers and criminals

I've had terrible experiences with this agencies, from the fake ads online, until I left the flat. They will steal your money, lie to you in order to get into an extremely abusive contract that has nothing to do with what's promised, then generate constant problems during your stay, and then try to get money out of you when you try to leave. If anyone is having other problems with these people, look for London Property Scams on FB.

If I could give a minus rating I would, they are bellow humans!!! don't trust them and NEVER give them your money!

Me and two friends were moving to a new property and we seeked Flintons guidance. Worst thing that happened to us. They tricked us into paying a "holding fee" of 300 pounds each to which the assured it was refundable (words wise) and took us to the administration office to pay. After we say the property and decided against it, the agents (Polina and Gaby) reacted with indifference and told us they didnt know anything about the money. After talking and sending emails to the GM, they failed our case and took the agents side because our lack of evidence against them. DO NOT CONTACT THIS AGENCY, THEY WILL TAKE YOUR MONEY AND LAUGH TO YOUR FACE AFTERWARDS, as they did to us.

They do not return emails & phonecalls.

They will tell you that if you want your deposit back, you have to contact their deposits team. It is allegedly based in a different location. The only contact is via email. You will never hear from them!

They will put your deposit under 'misspelled' name or address in a deposit protection scheme. You will never get it back!

Despite going bust under the name Citiside Properties, they now operate under new brand Flintons.

There were articles in UK papers about this agency, but sadly nothing changed.

Avoid at all cost - this is a SCAM!!

Promise you the world but deliver absolutely nothing. AVOID

Absolute scum of the earth. I found a room with them and paid them £500 deposit. Tjen when i came to collect my keys they told me the property was no longer available. So i was forced to pick a random room in a location that i didn't really want to move to. However i had to wait 2 days to move in so i was homeless for 2 days. Then when i came to collect the keys for the second room they told me i needed bank statement from my guarantor. . Something whichhad not been asked for previously. And my guarantor was not happy to give them statements. So they refused me application to move in and refused to refund my deposit money. The guy in charge there is an absolute monster and seems to get off on other peoples misery. I was crying and desperate for this deposit money to be refunded and he stood tjere smirking at me like he was enjoying the whole thing. Honestly he is vile. I would 100% AVOID this company at all costs.

It wasnt just me that they upset. I've been to their office 4 times now and each time someone is angry or upset. Trust me when i say to avoid this disgusting company.

The agent i dealt with Houcine is lovely. So they get 1 star for him but for the rest of the company and that scumbag manager they are honestly disgusting.

I'm planning on taking them to court about the deposit. It even states on the deposit form "if you are deemed unsuitable you will be refunded in full" but clearly they ignore this as they are thieving *****

Don't go to this company by any chance. This company is a scammer and everyone is not professional.

I was looking a shared-flat for my friend. However, an agent named Houcine did not arrange the viewing for me and the agent forced me to pay £500 for the holding deposit and told me to come to the office to arrange the viewing.

I went to the office with my friend to arrange the viewing, but the agent forced us to pay another £820 to see the contract. Once we paid for the contract, we found out that what we have paid for £1320 are including the room rent £585, room deposit £585 and agent fees £150. Moreover, the house is not the one I discussed with the agent at all. The company advertised the room near King's Cross on SpareRoom website (which are FAKE), but they provided the room near Whitechapel without informing us.

We have not signed the contract (technically broke the contract) although we have already paid £1320 as described previously.

I wish I could give them 0 stars, but this way would be the best way I can do. Hopefully there will be no other people are fallen under their trap.

THEY ARE A SCAM. STAY AWAY. Went there to find a room in central. The nice rooms that they advertise on Spareroom are fake and they say to customers that "that one's gone but I'll find you a new one". After Huscein only showed me 3 options and kept pushing one room, which firstly was above my budget and secondly I had repeated myself a few times saying that I want to consider other options, I decided on a double room in Limehouse. Once he showed me a couple of picture of the flat, I requested to see the property on the outside. So, the lying agent went on Google Maps and showed me a nice estate of flats, which was a completely different building!!! The flat he made me pay for was in an old building above a shop!! They also withdraw the holding deposit straight away without giving you a chance to read the contract or their terms and conditions. When I went to request a refund, the manager couldn't have been less helpful and told me to email a dodgy looking email address. Obviously, since then I've taken other measures such as a fraud investigation with my bank and will be taken legal action.
ALSO, THEY KEEP ADDITIONAL FEES HIDDEN AWAY FROM YOU. There is an exit fee which they expect you to pay, should you wish to terminate a contract with them and God knows what other things they keep hidden, before they make you pay the deposit.

DONT GO TO FLINTONS! SCAMMERS!!!
I was told I would get a viewing when I arrived at the office, a girl called Paulina showed me the most fake photos ever!
She finally showed me one that I liked and I was very desperate to move asap as my current contract was coming to a End
So she said I have to put down a £300 deposit to see the room? (Which I never saw) Estate agents make you pay to view a room? FLINTONS DO!
After she told me I would get a viewing once the payment does through so we proceed and I never heard from her again? She kept ignoring my messages and calls they robbed me! When I told her to saw me the property she kept changing the subject and asking me if I wanted to relocate when I haven't even see the property I paid for?
She is very unprofessional! A true liar that looks like a under age teen! She doesn't know what is coming or going
The company is a scam and the agents are scams!
It's all fake don't waste you're money and don't go too paulina !

Paulina is a absolute rubbish agent I've ever come across she is very rude can't even speak English properly how on earth did they employe her?
She doesn't know what she's talking about!
She's taken my deposit I can't get it back now!
I've taken her name and will be taking this further don't ever come here!!! It's a scam she is a scam!!! They rob you for every penny! They need fo get shutdown!

Flintons is hands down the worst customer experience I've ever had. They put people in wrong rooms and deny it, they try their best to avoid showing you the room before signing the contract. They promise the cleaning and maintenance but fail to deliver and get away with it because it stipulates in the contract that they're not responsible for delays.

The bath was blocked for months and they gave up trying to fix it until the end of my contract when they finally did it because they had the incentive. Broadband was not installed properly for months.

Honestly, these people are scum. They prey on young naive students and graduates/internationals, exploiting their ignorance for commission.

Unless you are extremely lucky, you WILL have a terrible experience with these people.

This company, if you can call it that, has no customer service. You can never get hold of anyone. I have never been treated so badly in all my life. There are all rude and ignorant. After speaking to mangers and being told that they would come back and speak to me in 30 mins, they never turn up. All they do it run away. The property i was given was discussing, there were problems with the flat. Never go with this company

Really pathetic customer service. Manager is unfriendly and not professional at all. Staff I was in contact with were impatient and rude, make me feel like a burden for having a request at all.
Unfriendly, unwelcoming, rude and pretty horrible. If your job is to find me a place then that's your job. If you don't like your job leave! Don't take it out on customers. The worst customer experience I've ever had in 25+ years of my life in London.
Rude is an understatement

These guys have caused me such major headaches. Here is a short list of issues I've had to deal with:
1.) Lies - They promise to fix my internet and give me cleaning. Nothing has happened yet.
2.) Crazy fees - I just found out (from only reading the reviews now) that my contract has a "checkout fee". I have to pay them to leave!?
3.) Incompetence - This firm is either hiring the dumbest people they can find as a result of paying them low wages. Whenever I call in to ask for an update every person (today it was yet another new girl... guess the other people left as they hated working there) they ask for my address and room number and promise to write down the issue (blocked drain for me) I call back and nothing was even remembered

This company is nothing but incapable of doing honest work. They will scam you out of as much money as they can from you. Next time you rent make sure to read reviews... I will most certainly not make this same mistake again.

Horrible service I wish I didn't signed my contract with them paying without receipts, getting your keys without taking you to see the room you have to go by yourself they force you to pay all that amount of money without seeing the room. Plus the pictures online are not real pictures I went to see my room and it wasn't the same especially the kitchen. GUYS PLEASE NEVER VISIT THEM they are stealing you. p.s I wish I could give a ZERO star

I had just completed my studies and wanted a job in London. I found one of their adverts on SpareRoom. Instead of having a viewing at the actual house (like I did with other estate agents) I was told to come into their office. I thought it unusual but went anyway. Upon arriving I was told that the room was no longer there but they had something similar.

When I signed my contract I was informed that utilities bill of £100 was included. However for my first month I had to pay them myself *without* Flintons paying as they said they would. What's worse is that for the 2nd month they have said that I need to pay my rent in full without any deductions for utilities yet again. That means that I have now paid an extra £200.00 towards my flat.

When I call them the actual reception can't even speak English that well. It is hugely annoying when you can't even explain the problem you're having to the first person that answers the phone.

Furthermore all my flatmates say that they had to wait three months before the internet was installed. Thankfully it finally came but I would have really hated waiting that long.

I can only wonder if I will actually get my deposit back as their CRM (or rather lack of one) is totally useless.