Good service is harder to see when the process remains hidden

Consumers say they’re not being kept in the loop about progress on transactions. Andrew Vaughan says the issue isn’t a lack of communication from conveyancers, but a problem with the systems that are designed to facilitate it.

Few findings are likely to concern conveyancers more than the suggestion that some clients feel they are not being given the full story about their transaction.

A YouGov survey of 1,251 UK homeowners, carried out in May 2026 for LawtechUK, found that 10% of respondents felt they were “never getting the whole truth” from their conveyancer. Some 14% said they had no visibility of what was happening, while 24% had to chase their solicitor or conveyancer for updates.

These findings point to a gap between the work taking place and the client’s view of it. That gap is important because trust can weaken when buyers and sellers don’t know exactly where they are in the process, what comes next or which party is holding up progress.

This should not be reduced to a debate about whether conveyancers communicate often enough. Most firms put considerable time and effort into keeping clients informed, but they are doing so within a property market involving several organisations, separate records and many dependencies. A conveyancer may be progressing the legal work while awaiting a response from elsewhere, yet the client sees only a period without an update.

The question, therefore, is not simply how firms can communicate more, it’s how they can keep clients informed without creating an unsustainable amount of additional work.

Making service part of the working process

LawtechUK’s research demonstrates that buyers want change. One in five respondents said they would actively seek a conveyancer offering real-time updates if they moved again. A further 17% would consider using a technology-based service if it helped shorten the time to completion.

This demand does not mean clients want a fully automated service. Property transactions are personal, costly and sometimes difficult. Buyers and sellers still want access to someone who can explain a legal issue, set realistic expectations and offer reassurance when circumstances change.

However, not every update requires a telephone call or individually written email. Clients may simply want to know that a document has been received, an enquiry has been raised, or an action is awaiting another party.

Making this information available through the normal case workflow can offer a better balance, meaning routine progress can be shared without taking conveyancers away from work that requires their legal knowledge, and personal contact can then be used where it adds most value.

Reducing the work behind each transaction

The same principle applies to the exchanges taking place between conveyancers, lenders and other parties. Repeated data entry, long email threads and uncertainty over the latest document can add work without moving a case closer to completion.

Providing a more automated, onboarding and update process allows information to be collected digitally where appropriate and when firms need to remain compliant on Lender Panels is one example where the firms time can be freed up. Structured queries can create a clear record of questions, replies and outstanding actions, and can help to provide a first time response to queries. Electronic Certificate of Title processing and controlled document storage are all items that can reduce the amount manual processing and allow conveyancers to focus on the work they have been trained to do.

These changes are not about asking conveyancers to adopt technology for its own sake. A new system is only useful if it removes work, fits existing practices and gives staff a clear view of where their attention is needed.

The post-offer structure

The development of transaction management platforms forms part of this wider move towards more structured post-offer working. No platform can prevent a chain from collapsing or remove the need to resolve a complex title issue, nor can it control how quickly every organisation responds. But what the best systems can do is make the current position easier to establish and allow potential delays to be seen sooner.

That could help address the difference between the service conveyancers are working hard to deliver and the experience reported by some clients. Consumers do not need access to every legal detail, but they do expect honest timescales, useful information and a sense of what is happening.

Helping conveyancers meet those expectations should not require them to spend more of their day answering requests for progress. It should begin with making the work already taking place clearer to everyone involved.

About the author

Andrew Vaughan is head of customer management at e4 Strategic, a technology business that provides proptech and digital solutions connecting property professionals, lenders and conveyancers. He has background experience with Hometrack, Legal & General, and UKAR.

The views expressed in this article are those of the author and not those of Today’s Conveyancer.