Support for managing brokers

Licensees see their managers as one of their most reliable sources of information, so it’s important for managing brokers to keep up to date. We’re continuing to develop specific resources to help you keep your licensees informed on regulations, requirements and changes in the industry. We’ll let you know as each new resource is developed, and will make it available here.

New resources

GST may bite you is a video featuring E&O staff lawyer Chris Johnston discussing what licensees should watch for when handling transactions involving GST. You may prefer to use the PowerPoint presentation alone, depending on your meeting situation. 

What would you do? If you haven’t already done so, we encourage you to take advantage of the What would you do? presentation series to kick off productive licensee discussions. There are four presentations available: conflicts of interest, misrepresentation, implied agency and sticking to your area of expertise. The links to each topic’s presentation and speaker notes are provided in the bullet below. These resources were created as a joint loss prevention project by E&O, BCREA and the BC Real Estate Council.

What would you do? Two new PowerPoint presentations in this series are now available, covering the topics of conflicts of interest (download PowerPoint Presentation, PDF Speaking Notes, PDF Presentation) and misrepresentations (download PowerPoint Presentation, PDF Speaking Notes, PDF Presentation). This series is a joint loss prevention project by E&O, BCREA and the BC Real Estate Council. All presentations in the series can be found on BCREA’s dedicated REALTOR Link page.

What would you do? The second PowerPoint presentation in the What would you do? series explores the importance of sticking to your area of expertise. The PDF speaking notes and PDF presentation are also available to assist you. The series is being created as a joint loss prevention project by E&O, BCREA and the BC Real Estate Council. All presentations in this series can be found on BCREA’s dedicated REALTOR Link page.

Pitfalls of poorly drafted contracts: This PowerPoint presentation offers timely reminders and will spark discussion about how to properly draft and review a contract. You can read more on this topic in the article, The pitfalls of the poorly drafted contract, in the September 2020 Risk Report.

What would you do? Take advantage of the “What would you do?” presentation series, a joint loss prevention project by E&O, BCREA and the Real Estate Council. The first presentation explores some of the risks around implied agency; it includes a PowerPoint presentation and speaking notes.

Keep up to speed: Use this PowerPoint presentation at an office meeting to remind your licensees how important it is to stick to their areas of expertise.

Chris Johnston discusses the importance of good recordkeeping (video): Use this video at an office meeting so your licensees can hear E&O staff lawyer Chris Johnston explain why recordkeeping is important and why documents matter.

Three common claims to watch out for: This PowerPoint presentation reviews three of the most common reasons for claims and complaints, and how to avoid them. You can read more in the article “Three common claims to watch out for” in the September 2019 Risk Report.

Five risk hot spots: Don’t get burned: This PowerPoint presentation offers viewers the benefit of what lawyer Scott Twining has learned about the five most common grounds for claims, and how to avoid them. You can read more in the article “Five risk hot spots: Don’t get burned” in the June 2019 Risk Report.

Mistakes you should NEVER make: This PowerPoint presentation is a great discussion starter to remind licensees of errors they should avoid so they don’t face potential E&O claims. You can read more in the article “Mistakes you should never make…” in the March 2019 Risk Report.

Top 10 current claim issues, and tips to avoid them: This PowerPoint presentation will help you illustrate to your team the most common claims brought against licensees, and practical tips to avoid them in their provision of trading services. Further details are available in the article of the same name in the December 2018 issue of Risk Report.

Knowing your client: Use this PowerPoint presentation to remind your licensees and staff of what they need to know about their clients, whether individuals or corporations, in today’s increasingly complex, global marketplace. Other resources include Scott Twining and Lindsay Nilsson’s article on the same topic in the September 2018 Risk Report.

Indemnity Plan RE0418: Use this PowerPoint presentation to remind your licensees and staff what their Indemnity Plan covers, as well as what is excluded. Other resources include the FAQ section of the E&O website and Bill McLeod’s article on “Risk and Insurance for the real estate licensee.” Note that the application of coverage is determined by the wording of the Indemnity Plan.

Subject clauses: Subject clauses are complicated. Use this PowerPoint presentation (with speaking notes) at your office meeting to help your licensees write clear, enforceable contracts and understand good faith obligations in contracts. Other resources include the article “Subject Clauses, Simple Right?” in the December 2017 Risk Report and “Subject Clauses: Let’s Make a Deal” in the May 2014 issue.

How to prevent mistakes: Use this PowerPoint presentation, based on the article, “Why things go wrong … and how to prevent it” in the September 2017 Risk Report, to lead discussion on common errors that licensees make and ways to prevent them. To help you make the presentation, we’ve prepared speaking notes that you can print out ahead of time.

Video: Check out our recently posted video, a joint production by E&O and the BC Real Estate Association, explaining the basics of Errors and Omissions insurance. It’s ideal to spark a discussion with new licensees, or as a review at a regular staff meeting.

Record keeping tips: This PowerPoint presentation based on Brent Johnston’s article in the June 2017 Risk Report makes it easy for you to talk to your staff about the importance of keeping good records, and how to do it. Start a discussion about times when good records could have made a big difference in a dispute, to bring home to licensees the importance of keeping records about their own transactions. Print out our loss prevention pdf as a take-away for your licensees.