Need to make a complaint against your conveyancer? Here’s how

Complaints about conveyancers have hit the headlines recently, not for tales of bad advice or inflated costs but the length of time it takes for matters to be resolved.

The Legal Ombudsman (LeO), a free and impartial service that investigates complaints against lawyers in England and Wales, has been criticised after it was revealed that some consumers had been left waiting for answers for more than two years.

While Council for Licensed Conveyancers (CLC)-regulated firms generate just 4% of complaints handled by LeO, these delays are unacceptable, and we have previously called for action – such as outsourcing work – to help clear the backlog.

The ombudsman maintains progress is being made, but in the meantime it’s more important than ever that homebuyers take all possible steps to avoid any issues before they arise.

How to choose the right conveyancer for your home purchase

When it feels like every penny you have has been scraped together for the house deposit, it’s tempting to pick a conveyancer offering the most competitive price.

That’s why it’s a good idea to start researching conveyancers even before you’ve found your perfect property.

Is the quote genuine or are there any hidden charges? For example, ‘no completion, no fee’ agreements are becoming increasingly common in conveyancing.

However, you will still be required to pay for disbursements – charges such as Stamp Duty, HM Land Registry fees or for local authority searches – that your lawyer must pay to third parties at the start of the homebuying process.

Does the firm tick all your boxes when it comes to factors like experience, estimated time frames and communication methods? Have other people found their service as good as the price? Ask family and friends and check sites like TrustPilot and ReviewSolicitors to see what former clients have said.

Finally, make sure they’re regulated. As a condition of licence, all practices and individuals regulated by the CLC must have professional indemnity insurance in place to protect consumers should something go wrong.

Reputable firms should send you a client care letter at the outset with a description of the service to be provided and a breakdown of costs. Don’t sign this unless you’re 100% happy with the contents.

What to do if you have a complaint about your conveyancer?

The majority of property transactions run smoothly with no issues but if you do encounter a problem, it’s likely it will be related to communication, advice, behaviour or costs.

In the first instance, we would always advise that you raise the matter with your conveyancer and at the earliest opportunity rather than waiting until the issue gets any worse.

For clarity and to put on record how and when you raised concerns, it’s best to do this in writing either via email or post.

If you haven’t heard from your conveyancer in a time frame you consider reasonable or if you have and aren’t satisfied, the next step is to write to the practice.

Every firm should have its own procedure for dealing with complaints and in larger organisations may even have a dedicated person or team. Firms are required to give you this information, which is usually included in your initial correspondence and should also be on their website.

When writing, you should request confirmation that your complaint has been received and how long you should expect to wait before receiving a response. This may vary, but the industry standard is a week in which to receive an acknowledgement and 28 days for a response / resolution.

How to take a complaint against a conveyancer further

In the event that you are still unhappy, you can escalate your complaint to a governing body which in this case will be either LeO or the regulator, likely to be the CLC or the Solicitors’ Regulation Authority (SRA).

LeO deals with complaints about poor service, examples of which may include delays, failing to advise you of significant issues, not responding to emails, letters or calls, giving you unclear advice or charging you an amount you are not happy with.

It is important to note that you must have first made a complaint to the conveyancer or practice in question and received a response before escalating matters to LeO.

Before doing this, you should also make sure you have all the relevant details such as names, dates and any / all correspondence that clarifies your instructions, details of the allegation being made and any losses you have incurred as a result.

The CLC deals with complaints you have about the honesty or ethics of your lawyer, which may breach our Code of Conduct.

These could include them losing your money, acting dishonestly in giving you advice, continuing to act for you despite a conflict of interests, or discriminating against you because of age, disability, gender, sexuality or any other protected characteristic.

While we can’t deal with disputes about service, however, we do have a modest compensation fund for specific rare cases such as, in certain situations, if we have closed a practice and you believe that practice owes you money.

We will always acknowledge initial receipt of your concern and aim to formally respond within 28 days.

The CLC supports its regulated conveyancers to ensure that issues like the above are kept to a minimum, but if you do have to complain then we want to make it as fair and straightforward as possible.

Stephen Ward is director of strategy and external relations at the Council for Licensed Conveyancer