I am presently looking for IT contracting roles, and since I am in the UK, this means I am obliged to make use of a recruiter. I am not particularly price-sensitive when it comes to a daily rate, and tend to value location (commutability) and industry (cultural fit) relatively highly.
This means that I am keen to find out who the client is, and where their offices are located, at the soonest possible opportunity. I am aware that recruiters are worried that I will use this information to cut them out of the deal, though I have no plans to do so.
Today a recruiter asked me to send him an email agreeing that I would let his firm "exclusively represent me in connection with the role", and I did so, with the proviso that I agreed in connection with this round of hiring only:
As per your request, I am happy to put in writing that your firm can exclusively represent me in connection with this round of hiring for the [title] role.
I used this wording ("with this round of hiring") so that if I encounter the role naturally through another recruiter in a few months time, I shall have no legal or moral problems using the new recruiter. (Broadly speaking, I do not care who represents me).
Was I correct to acquiesce to this demand? Do experienced contractors refuse to make these sorts of legalistic promises, and have I been naive in agreeing to it?