RICS APC Ethics cheat sheet

Five ethical standards in RICS' professional and ethical standards: act with integrity; always provide a high standard of service; act in a way that promotes trust in the profession; treat others with respect; take responsibility.

Integrity means being honest and straightforward in all that you do, including not misrepresenting your qualifications, experience or the advice you give.

The 'trust in the profession' standard covers acting in the public interest, behaving professionally and promoting the profession positively in all dealings.

Conflict of interest rule: identify the conflict, disclose it in writing to all affected parties, and decline or manage the instruction only with informed consent.

Confidentiality duty survives the end of an instruction; information may be disclosed only where required by law, court order or where the client consents.

Bribery Act 2010 offences: offering, promising or giving a bribe; requesting, agreeing to receive or accepting a bribe; bribing a foreign public official; and the corporate offence of failing to prevent bribery.

Gifts and hospitality: record them in a register, obtain employer approval above a set threshold, and refuse anything that could reasonably be seen to influence a decision.

Whistleblowing: disclose concerns internally first where practicable; the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 protects qualifying disclosures made to prescribed persons.

Equality and diversity duty: do not discriminate on protected characteristics under the Equality Act 2010; make reasonable adjustments for disabled colleagues and clients.

RICS regulatory framework: Royal Charter, Bye-Laws, Rules of Conduct for Members and Firms, and the Professional Statement on professional and ethical standards.

RICS disciplinary outcomes include action plan, caution, conditions, suspension from membership, expulsion, and fines; regulatory decisions are published.

CPD requirement: at least 20 hours per calendar year, of which a minimum of 10 hours must be formal; records are subject to audit by RICS.

Mandatory competence: members must only undertake work within their competence, and must maintain and record competence through CPD.

Professional indemnity insurance: firms must hold adequate and appropriate PII cover, with run-off cover typically maintained for at least six years after cessation.

Client money: hold in a separate designated client account, keep records, and do not mix client money with office or firm money.

Complaints handling: firms must operate a documented complaints procedure with a clear timescale, and signpost the RICS Dispute Resolution Service or redress scheme where unresolved.

Terms of engagement must be agreed in writing before work starts, covering scope, fees, limitations, and complaints procedure.

Money laundering: comply with the Money Laundering Regulations 2017, including customer due diligence, risk assessment and suspicious activity reporting to the NCA.