What the Worker Protection Act 2023 means for estate agents
The Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) Act 2023 came into force on 26 October 2024, introducing one of the most significant changes to UK harassment law in a generation. Employers are now legally required to take proactive, anticipatory steps to prevent sexual harassment, not merely respond to complaints after they occur.
For the UK property sector, this obligation is acute. Estate agents, letting agents, and property managers routinely conduct solo viewings with clients they have never met, in unoccupied properties, without colleagues present. The Act extends employer liability to harassment by third parties in higher-risk scenarios, meaning a client who harasses a negotiator during a viewing can create liability exposure for the employing agency.
The +25% tribunal uplift
The Act grants employment tribunals the power to increase compensation by up to 25% where an employer is found to have failed to take reasonable preventative steps. With the average tribunal award for sex discrimination and harassment claims currently standing at £53,403 (2023/24 reporting period, and uncapped in the way discrimination awards generally are), this uplift can take typical exposure to around £67,000 before legal costs are considered.
The EHRC has been clear that passive policies sitting in a staff handbook are unlikely, on their own, to demonstrate the proactive action the duty requires. Tribunals are expected to look for evidence of operational systems that actively support workers in the field, not just a document.
What the EHRC says about property viewings
The EHRC published its final updated technical guidance and an accompanying Employer 8-step guide on 26 September 2024, ahead of the duty coming into force. Step 7 of that guide specifically addresses dealing with harassment by third parties (customers, clients, suppliers, and members of the public), directly relevant to client-facing estate agents. The guide indicates that employers should, among other things:
- Assess the specific risks posed by third-party contact
- Put in place ways for workers to raise concerns and alarms
- Keep records that support the organisation’s evidence of taking action
- Provide workers with a confidential route to report concerns
The EHRC’s guidance isn’t legally binding, but tribunals are likely to treat it as a key reference point when assessing whether an employer met the duty. A basic mobile phone, used informally, is unlikely on its own to demonstrate the kind of systematic approach the guidance describes.
The compliance gap in the property sector
A survey of 1,000 UK estate agents by lone worker safety provider Peoplesafe found that 53% had no formal lone worker policy in place. Separately, a survey of UK estate agents conducted by Putney estate agent Allan Fuller (cited by Propertymark) found that only 22% of agents feel safe when on viewings, and 82% feel their safety isn’t taken seriously enough by their employer.
This sits against a backdrop of real pressure on the tribunal system. HMCTS data shows the Employment Tribunal’s open caseload rose by around 49% year-on-year, from 45,751 cases in January 2025 to 68,192 in January 2026, driven partly by anticipation of the Employment Rights Act 2025 changes. A growing caseload doesn’t by itself increase an individual employer’s risk, but it does mean claims that are brought are taking longer to resolve and are under more scrutiny.
How The Sentry supports WPA 2023 compliance
The Sentry is built around the practical requirements the Act and EHRC guidance point to:
Live location sharing creates a timestamped record of solo viewing activity, supporting a picture of active oversight of field staff.
One-touch panic alarm with automatic recording gives staff a fast, low-effort way to raise an alarm: a meaningful step up from relying on a phone call or text message in a moment of genuine distress.
Private incident reporting channel provides a confidential reporting route consistent with EHRC Step 4, allowing staff to raise concerns without going through the person they may be reporting.
Compliance documentation pack provides policy templates, risk assessment frameworks, and staff communication materials that help demonstrate the kind of proactive employer action the duty is looking for.
Why informal WhatsApp check-ins are a weak position to defend
Many estate agencies rely on informal WhatsApp check-ins as their main lone worker safety measure. This is worth rethinking, for a few practical reasons:
- WhatsApp has no automated emergency escalation; someone has to notice a message has stopped, and act on it
- An informal message thread is a weaker form of evidence than a structured, timestamped audit trail if an employer later needs to show what steps were taken
- Relying solely on a personal messaging app doesn’t obviously match the kind of systematic approach HSE’s INDG73 guidance on lone working describes
None of this means informal check-ins are automatically unlawful, but if a claim is ever brought, an employer relying only on ad hoc messages is in a noticeably weaker position than one with a documented, automated system.
A note on insurance
Some employer liability insurers are beginning to factor health & safety and harassment-prevention compliance into underwriting decisions. Persistent, known non-compliance could, in principle, be relevant to how an insurer handles a claim, though the specific consequences depend on the policy wording and circumstances, and this shouldn’t be presented as a guaranteed or automatic outcome. It’s a reason to take the duty seriously, not a certainty to lead with.
Key dates and actions
- 26 October 2024: Worker Protection Act 2023 in force: the “reasonable steps” duty applies now
- 6 April 2026: ERA 2025 whistleblowing provisions in force: harassment reports can qualify as protected disclosures
- 30 October 2026 (projected): ERA 2025 “all reasonable steps” duty, with third-party liability reinstated
With a realistic 6–9 month lead time to build a genuinely operational compliance programme, not just a policy document, estate agencies that haven’t yet put a dedicated lone worker safety system in place have good reason to start now.
Rebecca Evans is founder of The Sentry. She spent 18 years working as a letting agent before founding the company.