A BBC Watchdog programme has raised consumer awareness of the growth of unregulated sell-to-rent-back companies in the mortgage market, according to a leading provider of home reversions.

The programme, aired last night, focused on the issue of sell-and-rent back companies luring vulnerable people by the promise of cash incentives with no mention being made of the sacrifices they will make in terms of security of tenure and controlled rents. Current FSA regulation states firms who are authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) must offer a secure lifetime lease.

Michael Holt, chief executive of SYH Charterhouse, an FSA regulated provider of home reversions, said consumers are faced with alarmist advertisements and an array of unregulated products from companies that do not have to comply with the regulations in place for authorised companies. He commented: "Unfortunately a proliferation of dubious enterprises have rapidly grown in the last nine months, circumventing the risks that the FSA had sought to contain through the authorisation and regulation of bona fide companies."

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