AN estate agent has hit back after a renters’ union staged a protest inside his office.

Neil Sutherland said he “will not be bullied” after the group of more than a dozen activists from the Acorn Union stormed his office in Lewes Road, Brighton.

Mr Sutherland said: “It is very upsetting as this business relies on reputation.

“I know people do not like estate agents but this is a family-run business which is transparent and has a moral code.

“They should not be allowed to just intimidate people.

“I said to my wife, it brings back memories of bullies from when you’re at school.”

The Acorn Union deny that they were bullying or intimidating anybody.

The dispute escalated after a disagreement over a complaint about damp on a wall in one of the properties Mr Sutherland manages.

The renters’ union demanded he pay compensation to the tenant.

But Mr Sutherland said there was no mould on the wall and that “proper processes” had been followed.

Acorn group members then decided to organise the “sit-in” after the estate agent refused to recognise them as a legitimate union in the dispute.

Mr Sutherland, who has been running his business since 2004, said: “The group are more interested in playing vigilante than actually listening to you.

“I don’t recognise Acorn because of the way they conduct themselves.

“How can you enter into a conversation with somebody like that?”

Mr Sutherland added that he believed the union was posting false negative reviews about his business online.

He said: “It’s upsetting and frustrating when you have nowhere to turn but I was told you don’t give in to bullies.

“It’s angry young people who shout that rents are too expensive and they can’t afford houses.

“I’m sorry but that’s not down to me.”

The Acorn union says Mr Sutherland ripped up its demands when members invaded the office on Thursday.

Video footage, filmed live and broadcast online, shows the moment the group clashed with the estate agent.

Other protesters stood outside, talking to passers-by.

A spokesman from Acorn, a UK-wide renters’ and anti-poverty group, said: “He refused to take the tenant’s issue seriously so we approached the letting agents to get the repairs done.

“He refused to speak to someone with union representation and this is a democratic right to have.

“Refusing to negotiate with tenants with representation left us with no choice but to hold this sit-in.

“We were in no way aggressive or intimidating.”