Why choose Been Let Down as your conveyancing negligence solicitor?
When you instruct a conveyancer, you expect conveyancing transactions to be completed according to plan. So, it can be difficult to know what to do next when conveyancing negligence occurs – that is where we come in.
Here are just a few reasons why you should trust Been Let Down as your conveyancing negligence lawyers:
- As an independent law firm, we handle each of our client’s conveyancing negligence claims directly and will do everything we can to achieve a positive outcome in your case
- Every conveyancing negligence solicitor on our legal team is fully authorised by the Solicitors Regulation Authority and is a member of The Law Society and Liverpool Law Society
- Take a look at the hundreds of positive independent reviews left by clients who are satisfied with our service
- We take cases on a No Win No Fee basis, so you will only have to pay if your case is successful
- Our legal specialists have many years of experience handling professional negligence claims against conveyancers, just like your own
Rob Godfrey
Head of Professional Negligence says:“We deal with a range of conveyancing issues some of which only come to light when you come to sell the property which feels like your future plans are about to be blown away. At Been Let Down we will quickly assess the issues and the remedy and work to provide a solution.”
How do I make a conveyancing negligence claim?
Our team of conveyancing negligence solicitors is here to help you determine if you can claim damages successfully. With us, all initial considerations of your claim are free – with zero obligation to pursue a claim. Please complete our enquiry form and one of our team will call you back or call 0800 234 3234.
If you decide to proceed with your professional negligence claim against your conveyancer, it follows a set process that is laid out in the Pre-Action Protocol for Professional Negligence. The broad steps that any conveyancing negligence claim takes are:
Step 1
Learning what went wrong and how it happened, reviewing the paperwork that you provide, and the conveyancer’s file, to identify where negligence occurred
Step 2
Collecting detailed statements, expert opinions and evidence about your case
Step 3
Sending the insurers of the individual or firm in question an official letter of claim
Step 4
If the other side are prepared to agree to a settlement of your claim, then we would hope to negotiate a good outcome for you. If however, they deny the claim, we would advise you of the next steps which would likely include commencing court proceedings.
How we helped David
Find out how we helped David when his solicitor let him down.
What does conveyancing ‘negligence’ mean?
Unless you are a first-time buyer, the conveyancing process is likely to involve both a purchase and a sale. Timing is always critical. But many other things can go wrong – even when your professional has carried out the same process many times before.
Here are some examples of common conveyancing negligence claims that we can help with:
- Not properly investigating title(s)
- Failing to look at restrictive covenants
- Missing any rights of way
- Building regulation certificates not present
- Planning problems
- Failing to perform full searches
- Failing to advise you about adverse entries on searches
- Land Registry failures
- Not correctly defining boundaries
- Failing to take account of survey reports
- Not removing registered charge or mortgage
- Not paying off the mortgage on the sold property
It is important to remember that these are just a few ways that things can go wrong. Conveyancing is a complex process so you should get in touch with a solicitor who has experience handling professional negligence cases against conveyancers if any mistakes have been made that have led to a financial loss.
When assessing your conveyancing negligence case, it is important to make a clear distinction between poor service and negligence. You may be able to lodge a formal complaint if it is technically defined as poor service – but not negligent. Please refer to our frequently asked questions for more information.
Request a Call Back
If you think you have a Professional Negligence claim, or if you simply want to discuss a potential claim and have us assess it for you, please complete this form and one of our trained advisors will call you back.
All initial enquires with us are completely free and there’s no obligation to proceed once we have discussed your claim.
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Why make a conveyancing negligence claim?
Whether you’re buying your first house or climbing the property ladder, moving home is one of the most stressful life events. If you require the services of a conveyancer, finding the right one can be a minefield. You need experienced and competent legal professionals to help you during the process but sometimes you can be let down by the advice or guidance you receive.
All too often, conveyancing transactions are not completed according to plan. Mistakes can be made, land searches can be missed or misinterpreted and Titles incorrectly interpreted. It can have serious consequences for you – causing either financial loss or a restriction in your use of the property.
If anything goes wrong during the sale or purchase of a home, it can be confusing to know where to turn for help. This is where Been Let Down comes in. As conveyancing negligence solicitors, we can help you make a claim.
Contact us today to speak to a member of our conveyancing negligence team.
Charlotte
“Everything was dealt with quickly and efficiently and I was kept up to date with the progress of my case. Despite my previous employer being difficult in negotiations, Hamida managed to secure me an extra £20,000 in damages. All I can say is thank you to Hamida and her team for all their help.”
Conveyancing negligence solicitors: FAQs
If the negligent act of a conveyancing and property solicitor or licensed conveyancer lets you down and you lose out financially during the sale or purchase of a home, you may be able to make a conveyancing negligence claim. We appreciate that this may seem overwhelming, which is why we have put together a list of frequently asked questions to help to answer any queries you may have.
Conveyancing is an essential part of buying or selling a home. It is the legal process when the ownership of a home is transferred from a seller to a buyer. It often starts when an offer is accepted and ends when the sale is completed.
This involves making enquiries and searches about the property to see if any issues could affect the transaction. Conveyancing often includes:
- Checking the extent of the property to be transferred
- Enquiring as to whether any third party has any rights over the property
- Looking into any restrictions on the use of the property
- Confirming current ownership with the Land Registry
- Establishing whether the property benefits from planning permission and building regulations approval
- Checking the flooding risk
- Finding out whether there are any development plans which may affect the property
Solicitors or licenced conveyancers are typically members of the Conveyancing Quality Scheme (CQS). It means that, as professionals, they must meet certain standards, including a duty to provide competent service. If your conveyancer breaches that duty, you should seek the help of conveyancing negligence solicitors with expertise in the area.
If you are unsure if your conveyancer is accountable for the problems you are experiencing, one good starting point is the Legal Ombudsman. They can advise whether you received an adequate service when buying or selling a property – effectively acting as a conveyancing ombudsman.
They are unable to offer you legal advice and cannot help you make conveyancing negligence claims against your licensed conveyancer. For this, you will need to contact a dedicated team of legal specialists who have expertise in property law and your rights. However, as part of their investigations they will often illicit responses from the conveyancer which may assist you with your professional negligence claim.
A conveyancing negligence claim can take many forms and impact you in different ways. Some of the reasons you might have a valid claim include:
- Uncovering serious defects in the title of the property which mean you do not have the right to services such as water, electricity or sewerage
- Not being able to make alterations to your home because of restrictive covenants you weren’t made aware of
- Finding out that an extension at the property does not have the correct planning permission or building regulations approval
- The value of your home is reduced due to nearby building development projects which you were not made aware of
- Having to go through the costly renegotiation of a lease agreement with a freeholder because the length or terms were not properly explained
- Finding out that part of the land and/or property was not included in the purchase of your home – such as a garden or garage
- Finding out that you do not have rights of way to access part or all your property, or that someone else has a right of way over your property
If you are confident you suffered a recognisable financial loss due to the actions or inactions of a conveyancing solicitor or licensed conveyancer, you should get in touch with a legal professional to support you with making a conveyancing negligence claim.
If you are unlucky enough to suffer problems due to negligence on the part of your solicitor or a licensed conveyancer, you may be feeling frustrated and unsure of your legal options.
Here at Been Let Down, you will discuss your conveyancing negligence claim with a member of our specialist team in the strictest of confidence. The financial impact of professional negligence during the conveyancing process can be devastating to your personal and/or company finances.
The advisable course of action is to get in touch with our trusted conveyancing negligence solicitors to assess the legal details of your case. Poor conveyancing can have many implications – not least that it can put your family home and your security at risk.
When suing a conveyancing solicitor for negligence, you can count on our solicitors to help you with your professional negligence claim. To ensure we can build the strongest possible conveyancing negligence case and prove you have suffered substantial losses due to conveyancing incompetence, we will need you to provide us with full details of what happened.
This includes copies of all paperwork you received from your solicitor or licensed conveyancer – as well as dates and times of events as they occurred.
By trusting your case with our professional and specialist claims solicitors, you can rest assured that it will be handled in both a timely and efficient manner. You must be reimbursed fairly and fully for any losses incurred – financial, emotional, or practical.
There is no set amount of compensation you could receive if your claim is a success. It will come down to the individual circumstances of your conveyancing negligence case and the extent of your losses.
It can be based on factors including any costs you incur to fix defects or resolve problems or the amount you overpaid or undersold on a property deal. In all cases, our conveyancing negligence lawyers aim to ensure you receive the maximum amount of compensation possible.
Should you decide to make a claim, our conveyancing negligence solicitors usually offer to take on your claim on a No Win No Fee basis. This is also known as a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA).
If your conveyancing negligence claim is successful, we will take a pre-agreed fee as payment. This is called a ‘success fee’ and is a percentage of the eventual settlement agreed with you at the start. And we aim to beat any offer you may receive.
If we are not successful, you will have nothing to pay. This ensures you can seek what you are owed without any financial risk to yourself.
Time is of the essence with any compensation claim. Strict time limits apply, which start from the date of the conveyancing negligence – or the date you are first aware of damage caused.
In most cases, you must lodge a claim with the court within six years of the negligence, but in some circumstances, you may have three years from when you became aware of the problem. But we also know that this is not always clear-cut. So, if you are not sure, our conveyancing negligence solicitors can help.
Here to help you
Negligent conveyancing can have serious consequences for you, but we are here to help.
Get in touch with our team of conveyancing negligence lawyers to discover how we can help with your case.
Call us on 0800 234 3234 to speak to a member of our legal team. You can also request a call back at a time that suits you or complete our simple online claims form.