17th Mar 2026 (10 days ago)
Our experience with Parkers changed dramatically once we gave notice.
Up until that point, they had been fairly good. But from the moment we informed them we were leaving, the service deteriorated sharply. What followed was a pattern of pressure, disruption and a shocking lack of empathy during the most difficult period of our lives.
At the time, my wife was pregnant with a baby diagnosed with Patau Syndrome, a catastrophic genetic condition. In simple terms, it causes severe abnormalities and is very often fatal, with many babies dying before birth or shortly afterwards. Parkers were aware of this extremely serious situation, yet still chose to put pressure on us and create avoidable disruption at the worst possible time.
Despite everything we were dealing with, we were pushed to accommodate a series of checks, including EPC and electrical related inspections, many of which could easily have been postponed until after we moved out, as we had requested. One supposed “urgent repair”, which was not urgent at all, went on for several hours. Contractors from ARK Group effectively forced my then pregnant wife out of the house for the day because the electricity could not be used, and I was asked whether I could take a day off work, even though I work from home. The complete lack of humanity and common sense was staggering.
Parkers also arranged several viewings despite our request to keep disruption to a minimum. On one rainy day, people were allowed to walk through the house with their shoes on, bringing dirt and water inside, and agent Mark Brooker did absolutely nothing about it. Basic respect for someone’s home seemed entirely absent.
Things became even worse after our son died.
Shortly afterwards, Alice Beavis contacted us asking whether the new tenant could come to the property to take measurements. When I said I was not happy with this because our son had just died, her response was a brief apology followed almost immediately by another request for measurements. That exchange summed up the level of empathy we received, almost none.
The final episodes were beyond unacceptable. Last Friday, the shower broke down. Despite Parkers claiming to have a system monitored 24 hours a day, nobody responded. The issue was only picked up on Monday after a call. A plumber then attended merely to inspect the problem and told us that approval would be needed before any repair could be carried out. We explained that our son’s funeral was the following day and begged for help, but nothing happened.
A few days later, I called the contractors directly, Reading Professional Heating Services, and was told, without any sign of regret, that they had many other jobs on and that the matter had simply not been dealt with. In other words, it had been forgotten. I had even tried calling on the day of my son’s funeral and nobody replied.
As if that were not enough, we are also dealing with a boiler making a noise so loud that it is impossible to sleep properly. Yet, as confirmed by Mark Brooker in his email, Parkers would not send anyone unless I first provided a video. That says everything about how they operate. Even when tenants report a serious issue affecting basic day to day living, the default response is not to help but to create another hurdle.
What made all of this even worse was the attitude. Mark Brooker, instead of showing care or even asking whether my wife was physically able or medically advised to use a bath, simply insisted that we should “use the bath” as though that solved everything. It was careless, dismissive and completely inappropriate in the circumstances.
And before Parkers try to dismiss this as theatrics, any anger or distress from me came only after more than a month of pressure, disruption, indifference and a shocking lack of compassion during the worst period of our lives.
This was not just poor service. It was inhumane.
I would never recommend Parkers to anyone.
UPDATE (17/03/26):
The repair was then booked for today, 17/03/26, and we even received a confirmation message. Nobody showed up.... Read more