Solicitor used old searches - is this allowed?

Jhoney_2

G_M wrote: »

Surely searches come under the heading of 'disbursements' - items the solicitor has to pay for on your behalf.

If they paid for the searches they can pass on the cost. So logically if they paid the fee back to the original buyes then they (solicitors) incurred a cost getting them on OP's behalf.

If they just happened to already have them in the office (from last time) and recycled them, there was no cost to them so should be no cost to OP.

Agreed, but only if they paid them back. I do not think OP is entitled to a full refund as this would have been a cost to them had the original buyer not requested the search and OP happen to use the same one. Hence scenario where sol gets full payment - but it is split between buyer 1 whi commissioned them and OP who benefitted from their availability.

TBagpuss

It is appropriate to ask your solicitor about this. It is possible, as Stator says, that they re-did the searches but posted you the wrong ones. It is also possible that they bought the searches from the previous buyer, but they ought to have told/asked you first. It may will be that that is what happnd and that it saved time - some councils can be very slow.

It is unlikely that they simply used the old ones and pocketed the money but if they did, that would definitely be wrong, and inappropriate.

Millerdog

I was wondering what would happen if the old searches were accepted but something detrimental had 'happened' between then and now. Who would be responsible, the purchaser for accepting out of date searches or the solicitor for not providing up to date information?