Fine & Country Reviews 

Formal Complaint and Service Review
​To: Fine and Country Estate Agents (Isle of Wight)
Date of Incident: Tuesday, October 29, 2025
Property Address: Nelson Drive, Cowes, Isle of Wight
Client P. C. and Ariel Chavarro Avila
​I am writing to express my profound dissatisfaction and to lodge a formal complaint regarding the service received following the arranged property valuation appointment at our home on Tuesday, October 29, 2025.

​1. Breach of Trust and Unauthorised Substitution
​Our primary disappointment lies with Fine and Country for a significant breach of professional conduct. We arranged a valuation directly with your agency; however, without any prior consultation, notification, or opportunity for us to consent, the appointment was outsourced to Pittis Estate Agents.

​This decision, which deprived my partner of the fundamental right to choose who enters and assesses his property, demonstrated a complete lack of respect for us as potential clients. We expected the bespoke, high-end service Fine and Country advertises, not an unannounced substitution.

​2. The Agent's Unprofessional Conduct and Disrespect

​The agent sent by Pittis, identified as N___l, arrived on time but exhibited an utterly unprofessional and negative attitude from the outset.

​Our property is a very contemporary, minimalist, and open-plan house that has been recently renovated to an exceptionally high standard. The features include:
​Ground floor: Open-plan sitting room, dining room, and kitchen area, a fitted bathroom with a shower, ample cupboard space, and new French doors opening onto a gorgeous, sunny, and protected patio garden.
​First floor: Three bedrooms (two comfortable doubles and one single), a main bathroom with a lovely walk-in shower, and brand new roof insulation and finally a separate spacious garage with a small piece of land.

​Despite the obvious quality and significant investment in the renovation, the agent was overwhelmingly negative. He spent the duration of the visit focusing on the poor current state of the UK property market and offered continuous, dishearteningly negative feedback on every aspect of the house.

​3. Dishonest and Disrespectful Valuation
​The agent concluded his visit by stating the property's value had to be around 250,000."
​This figure is not only deeply insulting but also fundamentally dishonest and disconnected from the local market reality. Professional investigation of comparable sales clearly shows that even renovated council estate properties in Cowes are not available under this price point.

​Following his disheartening visit, two separate, professional estate agents valued our property at £300,000. This confirms the Pittis agent's valuation was wildly inaccurate and suggests either incompetence or a deliberate attempt to manage expectations downwards using fear-mongering tactics.
​Conclusion
​The entire experience was deeply upsetting. My husband was left feeling heartbroken after the agent's negative assessment and disrespectful attitude.

​We require a formal explanation from Fine and Country as to why our appointment was substituted without permission. Furthermore, we demand an acknowledgment of the unacceptable standard of conduct displayed by your partner agency, Pittis.

​As a direct result of this experience, we intend to post the following ratings:
​Fine and Country Estate Agents: 1 Star
​Pittis Estate Agents: 0 Stars

Trust Pilot does not allow me to set the 29th of September as the date of the incident.

Fine and country estate agents in Hove carried out a very high end operation that sold our house in a week. Dominique recorded an aspirational video at the property that peaked interest across the board, and after the initial offers, Matt was comprehensively engaged in making sure the sale proceeded smoothly for all involved.
In conclusion, we were very happy with F&C, an excellent experience and would highly recommend. Good job!

From start to finish a very good experience as a property buyer. Everybody I interacted with (Dominique, Lara, Matt) was professional, responsive and friendly, never forgetting however that they were acting on behalf of the property seller. Thank you all for your support.

I had been watching a property that I was interested in but was already Sold STC. I recently saw this property become For Sale again so I contacted the Colchester branch to enquire about it. My email contained the question "Do you think the vendor would consider an offer below the asking price?" - perhaps this was cheeky but knowing it had been on the market a long time and that a sale had fallen through I thought I would ask. I was responded to by Richard Seeley who did not answer the question, did not invite me to view nor did he ask me any questions about my situation. Instead he was curt and presumptuous. Having looked at their recent reviews and that a lot of their properties are unsold at this branch I wonder if actually they're going under and have just given up. So what did Richard say? He said, firstly "We wouldn't accept an offer from someone that hasn't viewed the property, and my vendor is not looking for a quick sale." I did not make an offer and it's a good job their vendor isn't looking for a quick sale as it has been on the market for 10 months (minus the 1 it was 'sold stc' for) and with his attitude it'll likely be for sale for a lot longer still. But what a nonsensical thing to say. I'd accept an offer (again- I didn't make one) from someone who hadn't yet viewed my property but I'd probably request they not mark it as sold until everything was in order. This is a rare occurrence I'm sure but to be so dismissive is extremely poor service. And that his vendor isn't looking for a quick sale; so are they looking for a slow sale? Richard, think about what you are writing please. Richard went on to say "...so in short if you're looking for a bargain to flip for a profit, this probably isn't the one" that was the presumptuous part. Clearly Richard Seeley has either given up or is leaving the company soon because if this is a reflection on how they treat potential buyers then they're not going to sell very much. If you've made it this far and are considering selling your property please look elsewhere and don't be lulled into paying ANY fees upfront. If your property is on Rightmove with decent photos, floor plan and write-up then it will be seen and you'll often find smaller independent agents are the ones that will go the extra mile because they really have to.

After paying the £2k listing fee for a supposedly premium experience we were thoroughly disappointed at almost every stage of the process on the way to getting our home onto the market. Communication was poor and unprofessional and questions from us along the way were ignored. So much so that we decided to switch to a new agent before viewings could commence. A waste of time and a very frustrating experience all round.

We put our house on the market with Fine and Country in Buckingham in 2022 and are about to remarket the property and I just realised how horrendous our experience was. We were conned into paying a 1,000+ GBP marketing fee as they said the would be marketing the property (which is in Buckingham) to London buyers which they possibly did and it is this that persuaded us to sign up. A young lady gave us a quote to 'dress' the house and we discovered she hadn't even gone to the property. Once we had paid the marketing fee, we had to help them rewrite the sales brochure over a period of weeks, due to repeats, spelling mistakes and incorrect plans. It was an absolute disaster from beginning to end. I trust the 2 guys we dealt with have gone on to pastures new. We asked for weeks for a For Sale board as the property is in a conservation area and has quite a lot of footfall and they finally put up a cheap plastic one as apparently the wood was too heavy for the drain. After months, we never had one viewing and the only positive was some OK pictures of the property. Experience was in 2022.

Had property on with F&C for three months .Their valuation but did not have one viewer. The communication from the staff was appalling. Would never use this company again

We recently bought a house in Milton Keynes with Fine and Country. Mark did an excellent job, arranging visits at convenient times, following up on all our questions, and keeping the process moving. We received prompt answers to our queries even out of office hours. He even stayed in touch after the sale had gone through, helping to tie up a few loose ends.

This is the second viewing we have had via this estate agent with Lee Whitehouse, who frankly needs to get another job which is not involving people skills!
Absolutely NO interest, personable approach or motivation in presentation! In short personality and sales approach of a cold fish!

Definitely not recommend ignored my emails tx and calls regarding a property I offered on never got bk to myself I offered full amount and was ready to proceed I only new the property went to sstc many weeks later wen I seen online still have never contacted myself

From start to finish we felt that our estate agent, Pavlo really understood what was special about our house and he led us through the process of bringing it to market in its best light. The brochures were beautiful. He helped us negotiate when we had an offer and was always contactable when we needed him. The other staff involved were always polite and attentive but Janice who took us through the selling stage, was brilliant.

We had an outstanding experience with Fine & Country from start to finish. Communication was excellent — always prompt, clear, and professional. Whether by phone or email, they were consistently responsive and kept me informed at every step, which gave me great peace of mind throughout the process.

What really stood out was how helpful and proactive Daniel (the representative) and Alice (progress chaser) were. No question was too small, and they always took the time to explain things thoroughly, making what can often be a stressful process feel smooth and manageable. Their efficiency and attention to detail ensured everything progressed.

The level of service was truly exceptional. It’s clear they genuinely care about their clients and are committed to delivering the best possible outcome. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend them to anyone looking for a reliable and trustworthy estate agent.

I cannot thank Elaine Parker & Maria Rae enough for their effective, proficient and professional way in which they handled the sale of our house.
They're most proactive and took away must of the stress and anxiety associated with the sale of house/home.
Elaine took over from Maria, and towards the end even proactivley dealt with the solicitors and agents for the house we were buying.
They're an asset to F&C, a hidden gem that potential sellers are NOT aware off when selling their property; however add a whole lot of invaluable value to the usual 'run of the mill' service most agents provide.
Seriously 'Well-Done' done both of you...!!!
YOU CANNOT ASK FOR MORE, GOING ABOVE AND BEYOND THE CALL OF DUTY..,,:-)

I would highly recommend Ed & the team at F&C Clitheroe to sell your home. Nothing was too much trouble, our thanks to Amber especially who was always on hand with updates & calls to keep us in the loop. An excellent team, giving excellent friendly service.
Thanks, Sue & Simon

We bought a property through Caroline at the Lincoln office and would highly recommend her and Fine and Country.
Through out the process she did what no other estate agent that we have ever dealt with does which is keep onto solicitors for updates which was great and being copied into those emails meant we could keep up to date with progress.
Thank you Caroline we will definitely use you if we ever decide to sell.

We have moved house after nearly six months of legal tennis with Solicitors.
Sold our previous house through Fine and Country’s Bovey Tracey agent Sam.
If only the legal process had been as professional, engaging and caring as she is.
We can thoroughly recommend Sam and her colleagues Zoe and Olivia.
She was always there for experienced advice, being empathetic and reassuring.
She gave us excellent counsel when selling our house, using the brochure and advertising, really hit the mark.
We had three interested buyers, within a couple of weeks of listing.
We used an online legal company and really wished we had kept it local, as trying to contact or get a response was terrible.
Again Sam stepped up to the plate and was on their tail, hastening relevant stages.
On the face of it, fees seem a lot of money but Sam got us full value and advice of where to accept or decline offers more than covered it.
All the staff in the office were always engaging, full of smiles, with a cup of tea on offer.
If only all estate agents could provide a service such as this. Thankyou

Ignored my emails, then sent me lots of junk. I enquired about a seven-figure house they are still marketing now, but all I have received from them is emails marketing other properties. I guess the vendors would be annoyed if they realised they’ve lost a potential sale. Cannot be bothered to ask the agency a third time.

Buying in France

We were very lucky that Lene Nielson helped find us our property and to navigate the French legals. Throughout the process she took onboard our reactions to houses and she matched us to the most perfect property. It was a quick process as she steered us away from homes that she knew wouldn't meet our criteria.

A thorough professional with huge charm, an amazing local knowledge and a wonderful sense of humour.

Thank you Lene and Fine & Country.

From start to finish, our experience with Lene Nielson was exceptional. She is honest and direct, quick to respond and always resourceful. Throughout our home purchase, we always felt Lene maintained a professional balance that was respectful and fair to everyone’s interests. We never felt pressure, only support, and most importantly, trust. We have already recommended her to our friends. Thank you for everything! We are very happy in our new home.