8 - Ethics, rules of conduct and professionalism Flashcards
What are ethics ?
Moral principles that govern a person’s behaviour or the conducting of an activity
What is the difference between rules and ethics ?
Ethics are moral principles that govern a persons behaviour, rules are something that has to be followed.
What is the RICS ethics decision tree?
A flowchart to help with day to day ethics decisions.
It takes you through a few simple steps to make sure your decision is in-line with RICS ethical standards.
What are the RICS Bye-Laws?
- Application and definition
- Membership and Registration
- Designations
- Contributions to funds
- Conduct
- Governing Council, officers and staff
- Subordinate Boards, committees and groups
- Procedure for general meetings
- Accounts and audit
- General
What is your CPD requirements before you are chartered?
Min 48 hours per year, min 50% formal CPD
What is your cpd requirements when chartered ?
Min 20 hours per year, at least 10hrs formal.
What are the new Rules of Conduct?
Came into effect in 2nd Feb 2022.
5 rules:
1. M&F must be honest, act with integrity and comply with their professional obligations.
2. M&F must maintain their professional competence, ensure services are provided by competent individuals.
(CPD etc.)
3. M&F must provide good quality and diligent service.
(client care, record keeping etc.)
4. M&F must treat others with respect and encourage diversity and inclusion.
(treat others with courtesy and fairly)
5. M&F must act in the public interest, take responsibility for their actions and act to prevent harm and maintain public confidence in the profession.
What are the five principles of better regulation?
- Proportionality
- Accountability
- Consistency
- Targeting
- Transparency
What is the RICS structure ?
Privy Council sits outside the RICS (awarded the RICS a Royal Charter)
directly underneath them is the Governing Council (purple box)
Standards and Regulation Board (purple box)
Management Board (purple box)
Audit Committee (purple box)
Who is the RICS president ? What re the working towards ?
CLEMENT LAU - NOT DEFINED YET
why do you want to become chartered ?
this is the gold standard in my profession, offers guidance and support from RICS, designation will help my career, I am committed to lifelong learning,
How you review if you are competent to undertake an instruction ?
SKATE
Skills, Knowledge, Attitude, Training and Experience
What would you do if your boss increases your workload to the point it is unmanageable ?
Be realistic with timescales, raise to manage first then senior managers
Sinclair gardens, why did a percentage of the contract value work out better than a hourly rate charge ?
The hourly rate was more expensive that a percentage of the overall cost
Can you expand on what the lionheart charity is ?
LionHeart is an independent charity run by our professionals, for our professionals. Through a volunteer network, this benevolent fund offers confidential advice, information and other support to past and present members of the organisation who, for whatever reason, find themselves in difficulty.
What is your role within the local RICS matrics committee ?
Committee member to help organise and run event, post covid
Can you give me an example of a gift you have been offered ?
I have been previous offered bottles of wine for xmas which is logged in the gifts register or declined if large value or within tender period.
What is your company gift handling policy ?
nothing over £20, within gift handling log. Consider proportionality and timing
What do the RICS say about gift handling ?
RICS members should follow these rules:
Only offer or accept gifts and hospitality that are customary, proportionate and reasonable in terms of value and frequency
Never offer or accept any gift or hospitality if it may improperly influence your decisions/judgement or give the appearance of doing so (e.g. consider the timing of the gift)
Only offer or accept gifts and hospitality that you would be happy for others to know about
Follow the policies and procedures of your employer in relation to gifts, hospitality and promotional expenditure - e.g. record in company’s gifts and hospitality register
Report any concerns about bribery to your employer or to RICS Regulation
At pebble lodge how did you grant the tender extension ?
Formally via email and a telephone call
Whitley bay home buyers survey, why did you not complete the work ?
It was intended for to carry this out by myself outside of my employment. I do not hold my old PII insurance and did not have the free time to complete to a suitable standard.
3 North Jesmond AV, why were you not competent to create these calculation s?
I do not have any training regarding these items
How would you manage a unhappy client ?
Try and understand why they are not happy, try and reach a solution, refer back to CHP
What insurance must you practice have ?
Public Liability, PII, Buildings, Contents, Gadget cover, Cyber etc
How does the RICS discipline members ?
Fixed Penalties
Regulatory compliance order - mutually agreed
Regulatory sanction
Can you expand on what you know about the equality act 2010 ?
The Equality Act 2010 legally protects people from discrimination in the workplace and in wider society. It replaced previous anti-discrimination laws with a single Act, making the law easier to understand and strengthening protection in some situations.
What are the RICS Bye Laws ?
- Application and definition
- Membership and Registration
- Designations
- Contributions to funds
- Conduct
- Governing Council, officers and staff
- Subordinate Boards, committees and groups
- Procedure for general meetings
- Accounts and audit
- General
you mention anti money laundering cpd, what is money laundering ? What did you learn from this cpd ?
Money laundering is the process of changing large amounts of money obtained from crimes, such as drug trafficking, into origination from a legitimate source. It is a crime in many jurisdictions with varying definitions. It is a key operation of the underground economy. I learned that the property/construction industry is a high risk/ targeted sector.
What forms of conflict of interest are there?
Party Conflict - acting on both sides of a transaction
Own Interest Conflict - relating to a personal interest
Confidential Information Conflict - relating to work between two parties which is confidential
Are you aware of any case law relating to PI insurance ?
Merrett v Babb
• Considered if a professional employee was vulnerable to claims brought directly against them for advice given on behalf of their employers.
• Essentially, an individual provided valuation advice and was negligent. The firm the person worked for did not have adequate run off insurance, the company shut down and the client made a claim which was passed to the employee that gave the advice.
Hart V Large
The Claimants brought claims in negligence against the architects instructed by the previous owners, the Claimants’ conveyancing solicitors and Mr Large. The claims against both the architect and the solicitors settled prior to trial.
Against Mr Large, the Claimants alleged that he was negligent in: (1) failing to recommend a full building survey, rather than Homebuyer report; (2) failing to draw attention to the issues of water ingress / damp in the Homebuyer report; and (3) failing to recommend that the Claimants obtain a professional consultant’s certificate.
The key take-aways from this case:
Being clear on the report about the scope of inspection including limitations, caveats and actions available to the client;
Recommending justifiable further investigation;
Taking all reasonable steps to ensure clients understand the differences between the levels of service, including the extent and limitations of each option
What would you need to register a firm with RICS ?
PI Insurance Responsible Principal Contact officer CHP Procedure for clients money Complaints handling procedure Suitable MRCIS principles
How would you deal with a compliant ?
Rule 7 for firms (2nd march 2020 V7) A Firm shall operate a complaints handling procedure and maintain a complaints log. The complaints handling procedure must include an Aleternate Dispute Resolution (ADR) mechanism that is approved by the Standards and Regulation Board.
What are the principles of the bribery act ?
Proportionate procedures. The policies and procedures a commercial organisation has in place to prevent bribery should be proportionate to the bribery risks the organisation faces. PCRCDM Proportionality Top level commitment Risk assessment Communication Due diligence Monitoring and review