paying an incorrectly added up bill!!

theexey

hi
any advice would be helpfull...
i have recently moved home and upon completion my solicitor rang me to tell me the total amount owed to him for payment by chaps transfer. the amount he quoted was for everything (all fees etc etc). i have payed the amount he quoted but he has since been intouch stating that he added up all the figures incorrectly, and that i owe him another £1000.
am i legally obliged to pay him or not
thanks

Tozer

Need more details. What was the £1000 extra for?

theexey

hi
he said he had forgot to include his fees into the total

makapo

theexey wrote: »

hi
he said he had forgot to include his fees into the total

That's wonderful. :-) How humiliating for a solicitor to overlook his own fees!

Yes you do have to pay it if it's owed. Check the completion statement.

Mark_Hewitt

Really? He provided a service. He asked for a payment, payment was made. End of contract?!

makapo

Mark_Hewitt wrote: »

Really? He provided a service. He asked for a payment, payment was made. End of contract?!

Presumably the contract that the OP agreed to included payment of the solicitor's fees.

Tozer

Agree with post above. He would have told you the disbursement bill. He is totally entitled to charge for his fees!

RadoJo

Were you not expecting the bill to be £1000 more than it was? If the total was what you had been quoted for the full service supplied, then I would be cautious about forking over the funds, but if you knew/were expecting the bill to be more and can see that he has in fact not included his fees, then I would pay.

myrnahaz

The solicitor should have provided their basic hourly rates when the OP first gave them the 'job', so it should be easy to work out the final costs - but it's not very professional for the solicitor to just give the final cost over the phone (especially when it's incorrect) - I'd wait until you see the final invoice before paying any more.
It must have been an expensive house if the fees add-on another £1,000, or was the original charge ridiculously low?

kiddy_guy

Depends

If he quoted you £5k for the job and invoiced that, it would be ridiculous if he came back and said it was now £6k. If he quoted £5k and charged you £4k, you should pay him.

If he provided no quote and billed you for full and final settlement, then it's a judgement call.