Has anyone in the uk had problems with northwood estate agents in worcester?

my son has had huge problems with these people.he and his fiance went for a house to rent with them. after taking 200 quid for checks, etc,they now say they need a gaurantor despite both being in full time employment and earning a bloody good wage between them. northwood now say they will need a gaurantor for any property they go for, and, after seeking legal advice, i have found out this is incorrect, so i wondered if anyone had had similar problems with them or any other estate agents. are they just taking advantage because they are young or just cheating to get their money, or, am i just old and cynical?????

for wendy.you seem to have missed the point of my question. whilst your answer was concise and informative, for which i thank you, the whole point of the question was to find out if others had had the same or similar problems. the added details were merely to give an overview of the problem my son had encountered with this particular agency. if the question was somewhat ambiguous, i appolagise.

I dont know why your Solicitor said this, you should have gone to a specialist who deals with issues like this everyday. I hope you did not pay them for the bad advice.

This is its up to the landlord/letting agency if they want to do it, although its not a legal requirement they can pick and chose who they let a property to as long as they do not discriminate. So although they diont have to they can if they want to, and its not illegal.

How do you think students get landlords to rent accomadation to them when they dont have any income, or a person on benefit.

A landlord can ask for this but you have the right to refuse. If they failed to pay the rent/bills you would be held responsible, and action can be taken against you in the small claims court to recover any outstanding money.

I would not act as guarantor, for anyone, the reason a guarantor, is requested is normally due to concerns of affordability and age.

See below section from shelter which is a UK charity established to assist people who have problems with accommodation.

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Whether you need references
Landlords often ask potential tenants to provide references to prove that you are reliable and will be able to afford the rent. This usually means providing bank details and/or a letter from your employer confirming employment. Sometimes landlords request character references or references from former landlords. If you are taking on a tenancy for the first time, a landlord might accept a reference from a parent or guardian.

You might be asked to provide a guarantor for the rent. This is more common for young people. A guarantor is someone who agrees to pay the rent if you do not.

why don't you pay them a visit, or if you are further away, phone, and tell them you have taken legal advice, and you will also contact BBC programme Watchdog......you may get their money back.

I dont understand why you think this is a problem. Their request is perfectly legal, so what is your complaint? How exactly are they taking advantage of your child? Its not going to cost them anything to name a guarantor. They are protecting the landlord, rather than having him being taken advantage of by people who may not pay their rent.
If they were asking for something unlawful or unreasonable, I could understand your problem.