SAFEagent has vowed to continue to raise awareness of client money protection (CMP) despite it being set to become mandatory from next April.

SAFEagent Awareness Week is going ahead as usual from today to Friday.

More than 3,000 firms are already part of SAFEagent, which provides CMP and a logo demonstrating compliance.

The awareness week, now in its seventh year, will remind tenants and landlords to choose a professional agent who is already part of a CMP scheme.

John Midgley, chairman of the SAFEagent Steering Group, said mandatory CMP was not yet a requirement until April 2019 so consumer money could still be at risk.

He said: “SAFEagent’s original aim – to make it mandatory for all agents be part of a client money protection scheme – is finally close to becoming reality.

“Over the past seven years the agents who got behind the SAFEagent campaign have been instrumental in getting us to this stage. They should quite rightly be proud they have been the standard bearers for this important protection for tenants and landlords’ money.

“As the requirement doesn’t come in until April 2019, we’ll continue to raise awareness with consumers, reminding them to vote with their feet, and only use an agent who can offer them financial protection now.”