DR Andrew Short (Evening News, Thursday, August 2) asks if other readers have experienced problems with Worcester's house rental agencies.

After our initial encounters with several agents we became quite dispirited - requests, as Dr Short mentions, for high 'administration fees', evasiveness about eventual bond return, and attitudes of extreme customer-unfriendliness.

You only have to look at any lettings advertisements in the Evening News to notice the curt wording.

The agents defended this abrupt practice by insisting they were passing on owners' preferences.

We quickly found out that most we met were pleasant, and open to reasonable negotiation on the above 'exclusions', and more!

Eventually, we advertised in the Evening News. We received 17 replies in three days, and are now happily suited. A dozen said that poor experiences with agents had provoked their response to our advertisement.

J M G Anstey

London Road, Worcester