Fund managers across the UK are increasingly introducing 'waiting periods' to ease the numbers of investors bailing out of the commercial property sector, it has been claimed.

Just recently Morley Fund Management, which is owned by Aviva Plc, as well as UBS AG's Triton fund and the RREEF UK open-ended fund operated by Deutsche Bank announced the imposition of 12-month waiting periods for investors wanting to get their cash out.

Given such demand, fund managers have been struggling to meet redemption requests as they cannot redeem the requests unless they sell some property assets, leading them to make such a move, the Wall Street Journal has reported.

Friends Provident has also announced it is to impose a six-month notice period on its £1.2 billion property fund.

A statement from the provider read: "In line with many other companies, the commercial property market decline has led to significant and sustained withdrawals from Friends Provident property funds. In these circumstances and in order to continue to meet payment obligations to policyholders, it will become necessary to sell underlying property investments in the fund."