Countrywide Property Lawyers - are they as bad as I've read?

Cottee

I am still owed £200 from months ago and still waiting after several calls!!!

DaveW007

Cottee wrote: »

I am still owed £200 from months ago and still waiting after several calls!!!

File a claim through the small claims court.

It's very easy & straight forward and if you win they pay your costs and you can claim interest on what they owe you.

I filed a claim against them in 2005/2006 and they admitted liability and settled before it got to court.

PM me if you want help with it.

Dave

Blythman

We've recently moved home (not a new experience as we've moved 8 times). It was our first time with CWPL who were recommended by Bairstow Eves and I can honestly say it was the most stressful move to date. It was a simple move, nothing to sell, sellers were moving into vacant accommodation, fairly new properties with very basic enquiries and yet it still dragged on for weeks. We were constantly on the telephone chasing them as we found them sitting on the file until asked to do something. The juniors answering the telephone frequently provided inaccurate information. We found them expensive as the original quote did not include all the additional costs such as forms for stamp duty and please check your invoice thoroughly as we were charged someone elses estate agent fee (over 1000 more).

To sum up we found them expensive, inexperienced, incompetent, and time wasters. Would NOT recommend them!

zeon999

Wish I had seen this thread before we used them.

They are absolutly terrible, very slow and you have to chase them at every stage to get anything done. This would not be so bad but they are also very expensive £1600 we have been charged.

Steer well clear!

We used them and did not bother looking round as we were told by Bairstow Eves that the seller was using these and it would speed up the process, which it did not and now after talking to other people who are going through the process of buying a house have been told they are only paying £800 for there solicitor.

So angry and wish we had looked around instead of trusting the estate agents advise.

WebGuru

Took 16 weeks in a chain with Countywide. Slow isn't the word. The EA makes over £200 commission when they get a buyer or seller to use their affiliated conveyancers.

smudger3_2

Hi All
We have moved house on average every 3yrs 6mths (5 times in 18 years). We are currently using Countrywide Conveyancing for the first and last time.
We speak to someone different every time we ring, our solicitor is never available, we are holding up all parties concerned with the move. We are due to move this Friday, it is 3.00pm Monday and we still have not exchanged contracts. I am now personally in contact with our buyers & sellers, last week the top of the chain were about to pull out because of all the delays due to Countrywide. Through my experience of moving I have been able to keep everyone calm (even though I don't feel calm myself), & reassure all concerned. The excuses they have used for their unprofessional, abysmal services have been amusingly stupid, they assume all their clients are thick and don't know when someone's contradicting themselves. We have always used local Solicitor's for house purchase and have never experienced the problems we have had with this company. If you value your sanity DO NOT USE THIS COMPANY. :mad:

smudger3_2

Snap, we were advised by our Estate Agents, I should know better by now not to trust E.Agents they're bound to get something out of the recommendation,
If they don't then they're stupid as well as untruthful. There is no way i'd want my company associated with such a dire company as CW.

Richard_Webster

As an aside I have only had dealings with one of their mortgage advisors on a regular basis and have no problems with him - he is great its just the solicitors that are dire.

Whilst there are always going to be issues about dealing with a large conglomerate i don't think it is fair to treat the mortgage advisers in the same way as their conveyancers.

Richard_Webster

( and CW are £50 cheaper than my current best quote of £800 all in.

Read all the small print and make sure that really is true.

auroan

Richard_Webster wrote: »

Read all the small print and make sure that really is true.

Yup I did. They forgot to mention that the estimated £750 didn't include the £200 land registry fee. Going with my own solictor now, even though I have to pay the HSBC for the privilege. :mad: