New Law Society practice note urges conveyancers to adopt consumer friendly trading practices
The Law Society has published a new practice note urging conveyancers to adhere to Consumer Protection Regulations. The news means that conveyancers will have to maintain ‘consumer-friendly’ trading practices. The ‘Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading regulations’ (CPRs) actually came into force in 2008 but recent regulatory changes have now made them potentially relevant to property […]
Practice note: Consumer Protection Regulations for Conveyancing.
The Law Society have released a new practice note covering Consumer Protection Regulations (CPRs). It covers new guidance in relation to the CPRs and its implications for practice and puts forward recommendations on a cautious basis to avoid the present uncertainties in the application of the CPRs. Recent regulatory changes have potentially made property sales […]
Consumer Panel calls for transparency on pricing
The Legal Services Consumer Panel have issued a report calling on regulators to “empower consumers with information” by requiring firms to publish more information on quality and pricing. In a report to the Legal Services Board (LSB) entitled “Opening up data in legal services” the panel have called on regulators to do more to empower […]
42% of consumers say conveyancing process is "too complicated and slow" – YouGov
An online poll of 1,314 people conducted by YouGov on behalf of Landmark Information Group has reported that 42% of consumers think the conveyancing process is “too complicated and slow” with only 4% believing it to be quick. Nearly one in four (23%) also believed the process needs modernising, with 37% also wanting environmental information […]
SRA helps law firms provide more services to consumers
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) is helping law firms that want to expand their business beyond traditional legal services by publishing new guidance on the Separate Business Rule. From November, the SRA will change its rules to make it easier for solicitor-owned firms to be involved in separate businesses that offer a range of professional […]
myhomemove’s CEO Doug Crawford calls on property industry to keep pace with rapidly changing consumer demands
Keynote speech at myhomemove annual Housing Conference (20th May) Crawford announces major update for eWay, myhomemove’s online case-management service, to improve the client experience Doug Crawford, CEO of myhomemove, the UK’s leading provider of mover conveyancing services, used his keynote speech at myhomemove’s annual Housing Conference yesterday to call on the property industry to keep […]
Research suggests lengthy applications are a major frustration for consumers
According to recent research by Experian, a lengthy application process proves to be the number one frustration for consumers when applying for financial services or products. The research shows that 51 per cent of people residing in the UK who applied for financial services were left frustrated by a protracted application process. The nature of […]
Veyo launches consumer campaign to promote benefit of online conveyancing portal
With the launch of the comprehensive conveyancing portal approaching, Veyo has begun its marketing and communications campaign to the home-buying market. The campaign kicked off with a Veyo banner prominently displayed at the Millennium Stadium for the Six Nations rugby union match between England and Wales last Friday. Veyo, the joint venture between The Law […]
Conveyancers and the Draft Consumer Rights Bill
The existing framework of UK consumer law is contained within a significant number of pieces of legislation. Consequently, the UK Government believes that it would be better if these laws were consolidated and then simultaneously updated, in the areas of law which can be viewed as out of date, inconsistent, or confusing for consumers. The […]
National Homebuyers Survey reveals consumer frustration and offers market insight into their conveyancing demands
An independent national poll on consumer experience of buying and selling a home sponsored by Veyo, the comprehensive conveyancing portal, reveals that the waiting aspect of buying a home is the most stressful part of the process. And the single most popular change homebuyers would like to see to improve the process is a faster […]
Consumer based evidence supports SRA's draft Competence Statement
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) is today [24 October] publishing the findings from the extensive engagement work undertaken to support the development of the Competence Statement. The SRA commissioned an external research company, BMG Research to undertake the study. The findings have been derived from a mixture of in-depth qualitative interviews and quantitative surveys with […]
Chair of Legal Services Consumer Panel on providing open data
The chair of the Legal Services Consumer Panel, Elisabeth Davies, has released her latest blog post, where she talks about the commitment of organisations to ‘providing open data and putting a core and reusable set of minimum data in the public domain.’ Here is the blog in full: Back in April I wrote a blog […]
Changes to consumer law to come into force
New consumer regulations (the Regulations) will come into force on June 13 that will supersede the current law for contracts between retailers and consumers on or after this date. Retailers need to update their processes and systems so that they comply with the new changes under the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013. Changes that alter the […]
Scotland Law Soc reviewing consumer protections
The Law Society of Scotland will set up a new and independent review of the consumer protections in place for clients buying and selling property in Scotland. The review follows high profile cases in Aberdeenshire and West Lothian where clients were left without proper title to land bought through residential property transactions. Labour MSP Jenny […]
Consumers relying on estate agents to decide conveyancer
A recent survey has revealed that most home buyers rely on recommendations from their estate agents when looking for a conveyancer. The annual report was carried out by the Property Academy in association with the TM Group and more than 4700 consumers across England and Wales took part. The findings showed that 68% of home […]
Help to Buy scheme confusing consumers
The Building Societies Association (BSA) has said that 43% of active first time buyers and other home movers are confused about the benefit the Government’s Help to Buy scheme will give them. Their research showed that 31% of consumers who are looking to buy or move do not know whether there are differences between mortgages […]
Legal Service Consumer Panel and CLC address conveyancers
Representatives of the Legal Services Consumer Panel (LSCP) and the Council for Licensed Conveyancers (CLC) talked last week to conveyancers about the current and future state of regulation. At the quarterly meeting of the Conveyancing Association (CA) Elisabeth Davies, Chair of the LSCP, outlined the panel’s recent proposals to simplify legal services regulation to focus […]
SRA considers new consumer engagement strategy
The Solicitors Regulation Authority Board is meeting this week to consider a two-year action plan to help ensure consumers have the information they need when they use legal services. The plan includes the launch of new consumer-facing website called Legal Choices which will provide a one-stop shop of factual advice and opportunities for consumers to […]
Consumer confidence in market picks up
The latest Lloyds TSB Consumer Sentiment Index has shown consumer confidence has reached a new high of 112 points in June. Growing confidence in the current economic situation and housing market are thought to be behind the increase. 112 is the highest level on record since the Consumer Sentiment Index started in November 2010. Confidence […]
Consumer expectation that house prices will keep rising
52% of consumers think average property prices in the UK will rise over the next 12 months. Just 12% think they will fall according to the latest Housing Market Confidence Tracker from Halifax. Halifax use the difference in these figures to establish a House Price Outlook (HPO), the balance of +40 this month is the […]