Hi Yulia. Thanks for your feedback. Prior to the viewing you made an enquiry asking if the landlord was OK with one child of school age. We contacted the landlord and he accepted that a child should be OK, thus a viewing to the property was organised. We explained to you that you would be the first people seeing the property, and that was nobody else in front of you at the time. You attended the property with you partner, your school age child and a baby. You made an application which included some conditions requested by you, including the removal of some furniture and decoration. The landlord was not available over the phone thus we communicated your offer and conditions to him by email. We explained to you that as soon as we heard from the landlord we would come back to you. As per our Agency Agreement with the landlord, we kept advertising the property until we received further instructions from the him. On Tuesday 21st September we chased the landlord to confirm if he was happy with the application that you had made. We, as much as you, wanted the application to be accepted by the landlord. We spoke to him over the phone, but he was not sure about accepting your application due to the conditions that you had requested. Thus the landlord asked us to wait for a day or two and keep the property on the market whilst he could make a decision. We spoke to you on the same day and explained to you that the landlord was still considering your application. On the morning of Wednesday 22nd September we received another application for the same property, with an offer of 12-month rent paid up-front and no conditions. As the agent of the landlord and in accordance to The Letting Code of Practice (Scotland), the Code of Practice of ARLA Propertymark (professional body that we belong to), and Law of Agency we were obliged to pass on any offers made to the landlord until a tenancy had been executed (i.e. the point of the tenancy agreement being signed and dated, which happens after the referencing process has been completed). The landlord accepted the second offer straightaway. For clarification, neither we nor the landlord had 'approved' or accepted your offer at any point. As professional letting agents we will never take a deposit from an applicant until the landlord has accepted an application with conditions, at least verbally. Your application was still at the incipient phase of just being communicated to the landlord, and thus there was no agreement in place. If you wish to bring this matter to an independent redress system to make sure that the matter has been dealt with correctly you can refer to The Property Ombudsman, a body that we are member of and adhere to. If you prefer to discuss this matter directly with me, please contact me on my direct line 01224-974140 and I will listen to your concerns. Yours sincerely, Eduardo Prato, Director, Martin & Co Aberdeen.

Date Friday 26-Aug-21: Hi Rebecca, Milla and Shannon. I've just tried to reach you on your mobile numbers but you weren't available. I'm very concern about your comments and apologise for any inconvenience. Your experience has been completely the opposite of what Martin & Co Aberdeen customers benefit from, thus this issue has been escalated to me straight away. Could you kindly give me a call on my direct line 01224-974140 to discuss these issues and do whatever it takes to make it right. I look forward to hearing from you. Best regards, Eduardo Prato, Director, Martin & Co Aberdeen. Update, dated Monday 30-Aug-21: Hi Rebecca, Milla and Shannon: I spoken to you as soon as you made yourselves available, which was last Friday in the afternoon. Since then we have spent hours on the phone discussing your case. I have made thorough notes of your point of view. It is very clear to all parties that the main source of all your frustrations is to do with the service that you received from The Lettings Hub. My team has given me similar feedback and a consequence of that we are changing our business relationship with The Letting Hub. We had paid them to serve you, and they did not delivered. Furthermore I have asked the Sales Director to approach you directly to clarify the situation. Despite my request, according to you, you have simply received missed phone calls from The Letting Hub and an email asking you to contact them. But when you tried to contact them you could not get through. These events, after your and ours complaints to The Letting Hub simply strengthens the way we need to change (read terminate) our relationship with The Lettings Hub. Leaving the issue with The Letting Hub aside, you also expressed your frustration for the way that you were treated by one of our team member, although you also acknowledge that the rest of the team had been extremely efficient and helpful at their task. I must emphasise that everybody in our team has been chosen for their experience in the industry and their caring attributes. In this particular instance according to your recollection of the events that wasn't the case. I need to accept that this is ultimately the way you felt in this instance, and I will be taking the necessary steps to solve this problem. It may have been as a result of miscommunication or high workload, but again, you didn't feel the way we want all our customers to feel. So we will take the necessary steps to change that. In the meantime I will keep chasing The Letting Hub so that they pick up the phone and correspond to you the way they should have done from day one. Once again, if you wish to discuss this further please contact me on my mobile number (which you have) or my direct line (01224-974140). Best regards, Eduardo Prato, Director, Martin & Co Aberdeen. Update, dated 04-Sep-21. Hi Rebecca, Milla and Shannon. You are as disappointed as we are with the lack of response from The Lettings Hub. I have personally called the Sales Director and the Relationship Manager in charge of your case, but none of them have answered my phone calls. I'd like to thank you for highlighting this problem in the first place. We have sought an alternative referencing provider which we expect will give out customers the experience and very high service level that we aim to give to all our customers. If you'd like to discuss this further, please call me on my mobile directly. Best regards, Eduardo Prato, Director, Martin & Co Aberdeen

Saturday 4th November 2021 Hi James, thanks for your feedback. Very concerned for your comments as this situation does not reflect our very high standards, thus it needs serious reviewing. Please reach me on 01224-974140 to discuss. Best regards, Eduardo Prato, Director, Martin & Co Aberdeen Update Wednesday 8th November 2021 Hi James, I have not received yet any phone call or email from you. In the meantime please find below a summary of the timeline of your tenancy: 14/08/21 - Negotiator on the day of move in assisted the tenants to a level that was well above what it was required. 16/08/21 – Tenants moved in and have received the inventory report clearly stating they have a period to ensure they are happy with the condition of the property. 16/8/21 – All parties signed the inventory report confirming there were no discrepancies, and they were happy with the overall condition of the property. 16/08/21 – Tenant reported no hot water. Kelgas (plumber) attended on the same day. There was no fault found with the boiler, the dial was turned down low resulting in no hot water. Out of good gesture the landlord covered this charge. The tenant brought to our attention the floor and water tank was becoming a bit disrepair. The tenant has also mentioned they were not happy with a stain on the mattress. 17/08/21 – Landlord carried out a further legionnaires risk assessment. No risk was found, and the water tank was deemed safe. We also chased the tenants to send a photo showing the mattress as this was not labelled on the inventory and we wished to rectify this. To date we are yet to receive any photos. 18/08/21 – We instructed Kelgas to inspect the floor under the water tank. 16/09/21 – We had received a report from the tenant that they believe there is mice in the property. Pest control was instructed on the same day to attend and carried out two visits to ensure the issue was resolved. 22/09/21 – 28-day's notice to quit was provided by the tenant (only 36 days after they moved in), as they had purchased a property. It was a very quick time to find a property, exchange and complete a purchase. 27/09/21 – Tenant reported a faulty light switch in lower ground bedroom. Electrician was instructed same day. 27/09/21 – We received confirmation from tenants and contractor that the floor under the water tank has been replaced. 28/09/21 – We received the invoice and confirmation from tenant they are satisfied with the repair. 29/09/21 – We had requested a photo of the garden as we did not hold one on file. 30/09/21 – We received confirmation from tenants and contractor that the light switch has been replaced. 20/10/21 – Tenants vacated premises. 26/10/21 – Outgoing inventory prepared by Ensure Services Ltd (independent inventory company) was received by tenants. Report showed that items had been left in premises by the tenant. Tenant requested for us to retrieve items from the property (because otherwise the landlord could charge for those items being left at the property). Although this is not a task included in any of our services, our staff visited the property and retrieved the items requested by the tenant and brought them to our office for future retrieval. 12/11/21 – Deposit proposal was generated to find that the shed window had been broken. We had contacted the tenants to mediate and to investigate further. 12/11/21 – Tenant had suggested that this must have been a few days after moving in and the children were only playing with stones in the garden. 13/11/21 – Landlord sought after the deposit for the shed window as this was no fault of the landlord. If you remain unsatisfied you can approach The Property Ombudsman, an independent redress body who will make sure that you as a customer have been well served. As members of The Property Ombudsman we'll adhere to their final resolution. Alternatively call me on 01224974140. Best regards, Eduardo Prato, Director, Martin & Co Aberdeen.

Hi Agnes, thanks for your rating. Unfortunately we were not in a position to put a property that was not up to standard back on the market. Quotes were sought with local contractors to bring the property to the correct standard. Unfortunately you decided not to take this option further. We would have been delighted to keep your business if the property was to the standard that our clientele always expects. If you have any queries regarding our position you can contact me on my direct line 01224974140 and I'll be more than happy to listen to your concerns. If you prefer your concerns to be heard by an independent redress system, we are members of The Property Ombudsman and ARLA Propertymark. Either of these professional bodies could independently examine your case to make sure that your position as a customer was looked after. Best regards, Eduardo Prato, Director, Martin & Co Aberdeen.

Hi Georgia. Thanks a lot for your feedback. Could you kindly expand on how we failed to serve you so that we can improve our service in the future. I look forward to hearing from you. Eduardo Prato, Director, Martin & Co Aberdeen

Hi Stephanie, thanks for your comments and feedback. We've followed the process in accordance to SafeDeposit Scotland procedures. You have given the opportunity to take the case to an independent adjudicator from SafeDeposit Scotland (scheme recognised by the Scottish Government) who will make a decision based on the evidence supplied by all parties. Please let us know if you would like to take this further. Best regards, Eduardo Prato, Director, Martin & Co Aberdeen

Hi Frances. Nice talking to you over the phone. As per our phone conversation any claim against the deposit is made based on an independent third party professional Inventory and Condition Report that were prepared at the beginning and end of the tenancy. These reports will be submitted to SafeDeposits Scotland, the approved deposit scheme that is holding the deposit. You are the guarantor to one of the tenants. The tenants have already accepted in writing that decoration had been done to the property without the authorisation of the landlord. If there is any dispute, all parties should submit their claim and evidence to the SafeDeposits Scotland and their adjudicator will make a fair unbiased decision based on the evidence presented. Once again, thanks for your time during our phone conversation. Best regards, Eduardo Prato, Director, Martin & Co Aberdeen.

Dear Isla, we’re sorry to hear you did not have a great experience. We'd like to learn more about your specific situation and make things right. If you wouldn't mind calling us on 01224636500 at your earliest convenience, it would be greatly appreciated.

Hi J W, could you contact us, as we can't find any records of the situation you're describing here. Customer services is our top priority and if something has not been done to the expectation of our customers we'll rectify it. Please reply here, or contact us on 01224-636500 / aberdeen@martinco.com

Dear Isla, we’re sorry to hear you did not have a great experience. We'd like to learn more about your specific situation and make things right. If you wouldn't mind calling us on 01224636500 at your earliest convenience, it would be greatly appreciated.