Conveyancing fees significantly more than quoted

aligator136

Hi,

I have just gotten my final bill for my conveyancing (which needs to be paid before completion next week) and it is >52% increase from what was quoted.

I know that costs tend to go up but going from £1747 quote to £2651 with no prior warning seems unreasonable. I have had previous issues with them, I don't want to make a complaint or refuse to pay out of fear of not being able to complete.

Is this normal??

ciderboy2009

Look at the breakdown - is it due to disbursements such as stamp duty?  If so then what did the original quote say about them?

Isthisforreal99

Surely it's simple enough to ask why the increase? What have the done that was not included in the original estimate - was it a quote or an estimate?

Was VAT included in the original figure?

To be honest I wouldn't say the final bill is excessive.

Exodi

The devil is in the detail - if you have the final bill, compare it line for line with the quote.

If one line is higher, and it's not obvious why, then query with them. Some of them you may be able to work out yourself, e.g. costs assigned to stamp duty were TBC and accounted as zero - but you did incur stamp duty.

aligator136

Original quote (includes VAT)

youth_leader

I would query it with your solicitor.  I queried my bill and they had overcharged me £177.00, which they refunded almost immediately. 

aligator136

Final Bill

The things previously listed roughly match up but there are many new charges I was not warned about. I have tried looking them up online but they seem fairly standard so I do not understand why they were not previously mentioned?

Exodi

aligator136 said:

Original quote (includes VAT)

OK, and now compare it line for line with the actual bill you've received and see what lines are different.

Ayr_Rage

aligator136 said:

Original quote (includes VAT)

Where have the extra fees been incurred?

aligator136

I have added the final bill above. I am struggling to understand why so many extras have been added and why I wasn't made aware of them.

Exodi

aligator136 said:

I have added the final bill above. I am struggling to understand why so many extras have been added and why I wasn't made aware of them.

So the vast majority of the variance appears to be attributable to the property purchased being leasehold (and an indemnity policy) - certainly not a standard thing to quote for. I guess if you made them aware the house was leasehold when you asked them for a quote, you might have a point to argue.

The costs don't seem outrageous, in my opinion - given the complexity involved, such as a Deed of Gift, LISA, leasehold, indemnity, etc.