Purchase Aborted Solicitor still charging

Flat_Eric

Anoymous wrote: »

Thanks for responding.
They said they may charge full fee incase i cancel in the first letter.
In the letters demanding outstanding balance because of costs / expenses incurred. Surely they have not done all of above work for which they are charging full fee.

How long from when you instructed them did you advise them that you were not proceeding? You said you paid them £250 for search fees and they haven't been carried out - why were they not carried out? It is your solicitors job to investigate title and part of that is to report back to you on the searches (Local, water, environmental, chancel, mining - if applicable). Did your solicitor receive a Home Information Pack?

Some of the items you mentioned in an earlier thread are carried out post exchange / post completion so they wouldn't have incurred that expense (unless they had pre prepared the forms - unusual in my opinion ?) so I think it unreasonable that they should charge you the full amount. How much was the property you were buying? How were they recommended to you? via the estate agent?

How much contact did you have with them? did you meet with them or did you merely correspond via letter/telephone? I would definitely question their fees and also report them.

chappers

It appears that they can charge you the full fee according to their letter and leaflet they sent you. The fact that you didn't sign anything is irrelevant as by your continued engagement of them there is an infered contract in place.
now as to whether they are morally in the right is another matter and it is abit unusual for fees to not be adjusted in the case of aborted sales. the big one is legal and admin fees, what the hell does that encompass at solicitors hourly rate that 3750 doesn't cover too much really.

Anoymous

Flat_Eric wrote: »

How long from when you instructed them did you advise them that you were not proceeding? You said you paid them £250 for search fees and they haven't been carried out - why were they not carried out? It is your solicitors job to investigate title and part of that is to report back to you on the searches (Local, water, environmental, chancel, mining - if applicable). Did your solicitor receive a Home Information Pack?

Some of the items you mentioned in an earlier thread are carried out post exchange / post completion so they wouldn't have incurred that expense (unless they had pre prepared the forms - unusual in my opinion ?) so I think it unreasonable that they should charge you the full amount. How much was the property you were buying? How were they recommended to you? via the estate agent?

How much contact did you have with them? did you meet with them or did you merely correspond via letter/telephone? I would definitely question their fees and also report them.

I backed out after about 2 months. I paid 250 for searches but when i informed them about my withdrawal and inquired about searches they said it was not done. I asked them to pay back the amount to which they said they will be holding it for the work they have done.
All my correspondence was over phone, email & letter.
How do i know if the searches were carried out or not just in case they back out on their own words.? Are there any documents as evidence? Thanks.

Flat_Eric

Anoymous wrote: »

I backed out after about 2 months. I paid 250 for searches but when i informed them about my withdrawal and inquired about searches they said it was not done. I asked them to pay back the amount to which they said they will be holding it for the work they have done.
All my correspondence was over phone, email & letter.
How do i know if the searches were carried out or not just in case they back out on their own words.? Are there any documents as evidence? Thanks.

Hello - Yes there will be documentary evidence if they have carried them out because they should have received the search reports. I can't understand why, if they were instructed for two months why no searches were carried out as it is usual practice for them to be carried out (1) as soon as you have supplied funds (2) as soon as they have a location plan of the property which is normally received as part of the Contract package from the sellers solicitor. By reference to searches I am referring to the Local Search, Water Search, Chancel Search and Environmental Search and mining search (if applicable). When they asked for the £250 did they specify what this was for???

As my background is not residential conveyancing, I am not familiar with HIPS but some HIPS will contain these searches so that may be the reason why they were not carried out and why therefore this £250 you supplied was not utilised for searches and is now being set off against this £1000 they say you owe them.
If they suddenly turn round and say actually we did carry out them out, you owe us £1000 for our costs on top then I would ask to see copies or the originals of the searches and also dispute their fees and report them.