Loathed to even give one star, wish there were minus stars to select. Obviously over inflated fees ahead of the change in the law. Very rude or at best abrupt staff when any disagreement happens. If you must deal with them get everything in writing as verbal agreements may later be denied. Plenty of other letting agents in Bicester to use.

I am literally disgusted at the treatment my family have recieved renting a property from your company specifically Aylesbury branch. They basically insulted us by saying we left the property smelling of dog. We have followed the contract and had the place deep cleaned (end of tenancy) dry cleaned the curtains. Repainted a room with silk paint instead of the emulsion that was previously there. We fitted new fire alarms. Fixed the shower door filled several holes in the walls that were there when we moved in (pictures as proof) but the letting manger at Aylesbury said WE left holes in the walls. When we got served our notice to leave out of the blue lettings management was so rude when we told them we had to stay there until they served us a court notice which we were told to do. As if we didn't feel bad enough but unfortunately we can't make two children homeless because we feel bad. If the "smell of dog" was going to cause a problem, why allow a dog in the property? Our dog smelling of dog is not our fault. I find it strange there's such a strong smell of dog even though everyone else can only smell fresh paint. When we asked where's our deposit or have you even heard anything my husband was met with no answers. Alexander and co are very blase with such large amounts of money needed for two children because we're now out of pocket.

Disgraceful company. Rented a property from them for 4.5 years. They told me I owed rent which I argued but paid anyway (stupid I know) now they’ve decided I overpaid rent but they’re going to deduct some of what they owe me due to a debt on the meter which occurred after I left the property and after I had closed my EDF account. Even with proof they are still trying to hold on to money which is rightfully and legally mine. Not only that my children and I were made to live in an incredibly damp flat which I complained about for 4 years, my stuff turned mouldy, even the bathroom lino ....they eventually listened and sent someone to check. A bad leak was subsequently found under the bath which had caused all the damage. Even now they are trying to withhold £290 of my deposit for “damp damage” which they ignored for years. It’s currently in dispute with the deposit company. NEVER EVER RENT FROM THEM

My experience with Alexander & Co has been abysmal. Rude staff across 2 branches that I dealt with, zero communication, not following their own procedures and being untruthful. Incredibly disheartening & disappointing.

Lets hope the takeover by Alexander and Co makes wholesale changes because Bannisters are by far the worst letting agent I have ever had misfortune to deal with. We love the area and have great neighbours and do not really want to leave, but their level of customer service and engagement are almost non-existent. We have been at the property a while and have struggled since day one to get anything out of them, the house wasn't handed over in decent order and it their completion rate on reported defects is less than 25%. Getting information from them is almost impossible unless they will make some money out of it. Avoid at all costs

Horrendous management. Irresponsible, rude and dishonest. Will never use again.

The worst estate agents I have ever had to deal with. Outright lied to us about charges and fees when specifically asked about this until it came up in our bill. Reassured us certain things such as fire alarms and weeds would be repaired/cleared before moving into the property and nothing was done. Useless.

Where to start...well like a previous 'reviewer' on this site who also reviewed Bannisters I too would rate them with less than one star if the website allowed this. After talking to other previous tenants as well as reading many reviews I have come to the conclusion that my experiences with this completely incompetent company are not unique or exclusive. It seems that if you are a tenant then chances are this company will simply treat you as a profitable asset that will later become dispensable. To be fair though many of the problems that I have experienced with them seem to be a recurring issue with the majority of the UKs lettings agents, although, of course it is not fair to 'tar all with the same brush'. So, firstly they will charge you ridiculous admin fees just to apply for a rented property. They dress these admin fees up with titles such as 'application fee' 'guarantor fee' etc (I know many letting agencies exercise the same fees). They completely fail to explain the purpose of these fees even after being asked. I understand that staff must be paid to complete administration tasks, but they completely take advantage of the situation with new tenant fees. Secondly, the lack of professionalism is atrocious. One employee (I refuse to call them agents) will tell you one thing (sometimes rudely or tactlessly) and then either fail to relay important information to other employees or sometimes provoke something completely undiscussed to happen. Example: We needed a new oven hob control installed, I submitted a maintenance report which provoked no action after waiting for 2 days. So I then called them to bring their attention to this. I was informed that the maintenance issue had now been acknowledged and steps shall be taken ( what is the point of their maintenance reporting system if they are going to ignore it?). I informed the employee, over the phone that I would like to be home when the contractor comes round to fix the oven. I gave a substantial list of times and days I was free. This was acknowledged by the employee, however, instead of communicating any further information regarding my preferences, I later found out that the contractor was given a key by the letting agency and he was then given permission to enter the property and fix the fault without any further communication with the tenants (myself). I happened to be at work when it was fixed, I could have been asleep or in the shower! The worst part was, I only found out because I noticed that someone had fixed the oven and left the old parts on the kitchen side. An absolute complete breach of privacy and a typical example of the incompetence tenants experience with this inept lettings agency. I could go one, our checking out experiences were also awful. However, in the interest of not writing any more of an essay than I already have, I will end this review with the following: this agency (if you can call it that) will take advantage of you as much as possible, will not apologise when they are wrong, will create unreasonable fees just because they can, will fail to practice even basic communication skills, you will always be chasing them for answers and you will feel robbed by the end of you tenancy. The only area they exercise any professionalism at all is in their appearance. They do make a lot of effort in positive advertising. However, if you book a viewing with them don't expect the employee to arrive for the viewing on time because they probably won't, but when they do they will most likely be driving an expensive car and wearing designer clothes'. This adds further insult to injury when the property deposit is very high.. IF YOU HAVE SOLDIERED YOUR WAY THROUGH THIS REVIEW PLEASE TAKE MY ADVICE AND CONSIDER ANOTHER LETTING AGENT. Thanks for reading.