(Complaints process and policies
Buying a house is probably the biggest financial outlay made during our lifetime; this alone makes it an anxious, often deeply emotional experience. If the process does not go smoothly, it can be natural to think a lawyer has failed in some way.
We try our very best to provide all our clients with an efficient, courteous and professional service. If at any time during the course of the transaction, you become dissatisfied with the service you are receiving, please contact us in the first instance.
As you will know by this stage, each email you get from our team will contain the happy / sad feedback faces, making it easy to provide us with feedback at regular stages throughout the process, as well as the ability to escalate any concerns directly to the Managing Director (Peter Effard), who can also be contacted by phone, letter or email.
Buying a house is probably the biggest financial outlay made during our lifetime; this alone makes it an anxious, often deeply emotional experience. If the process does not go smoothly, it can be natural to think a lawyer has failed in some way.
We try our very best to provide all our clients with an efficient, courteous and professional service. If at any time during the course of the transaction, you become dissatisfied with the service you are receiving, please contact us in the first instance.
As you will know by this stage, each email you get from our team will contain the happy / sad feedback faces, making it easy to provide us with feedback at regular stages throughout the process, as well as the ability to escalate any concerns directly to the Managing Director (Peter Effard), who can also be contacted by phone, letter or email.
Please note that any complaint will not affect your case, and we need your feedback to help improve our services. There are NO additional charges for time in dealing with any potential complaint!
Because your satisfaction is of prime concern, we always ensure that any complaint will be thoroughly investigated and if upheld, may result in:
The internal process is outlined below:
- If the file is still a ‘live matter’ with a Sale or Purchase not yet completed, the firm will of course continue to progress the file in the normal manner with a blend of email, SMS text and telephone conversations with the Conveyancer / Solicitor responsible at that time.
- Any final written response (Complaint report) will present a summary of the Clients keys points as described within their original complaint email, along with a detailed factual response to each key point.
- The final written response (Complaint report) is a search for the truth and aims to identify the reality of 'who said what'...'who knew what''...'what was done' and 'when'.
Due to the potential serious consequences on staff, any potential mismatch between events as reported by the Client and the factual reality of the situation will be clearly highlighted and disclosed within the final written response (Complaint report).
If you are not satisfied with our handling of your complaint, then you can ask the Legal Ombudsman to consider the complaint - Note: The Legal Ombudsman will receive a copy of the final written response (Complaint report).
Normally, you will need to bring a complaint to the Legal Ombudsman within six months of receiving a final written response from us and within six years from the date of the act or omission about which you are complaining, or three years from the date you should reasonably have known there were grounds for complaint.
You can find out more information about the Legal Ombudsman and filing a complaint with them at the following website:
http://www.legalombudsman.org.uk/helping-the-public/
Disputes may also be referred to an Alternative Dispute Resolution entity which has been certified under the EU Consumer ADR Directive; namely the Ombudsman services ProMediate and small claims mediation.
The following documents published by the Legal Ombudsman are very useful, and help to clarify a number of areas and what is deemed to be fair and reasonable levels of service.
Extracts from the documents below include:
• “Lawyers aren’t mind readers. They will only know that you have a specific concern about something if you tell them.”
• “Your (THE CLIENT) responsibility is essentially to communicate and let the lawyer know key details of the purchase and anything that you are concerned about or want checking out.”
• “Customers must set out their expectations from the start and ensure they’re diligent in checking paperwork, search criteria and, as in Mr H’s case, Land Registry plans.”
https://www.legalombudsman.org.uk/media/5wbkmo0v/ten-helpful-tips-conveyancing.pdf
https://www.legalombudsman.org.uk/media/auag1etp/conveyancing-report.pdf
Finally, as mentioned, we know that buying a house can be an anxious, often deeply emotional experience, and please rest assured that we strive to ensure a fair and reasonable service throughout.
Because your satisfaction is of prime concern, we always ensure that any complaint will be thoroughly investigated and if upheld, may result in:
- Internal disciplinary actions.
- External disciplinary actions by regulatory bodies (For example; The individual Conveyancer / Solicitor can be fined by their regulator and / or even banned from working), and therefore it is imperative that every complaint is thoroughly investigated.
The internal process is outlined below:
- Stage 1 - Client – Verbal or written expression of dissatisfaction by Client will be investigated and reported on.
- Stage 2 - Law firm - Proportionate response and signpost future options for Client via the Legal Ombudsman, plus internal disciplinary action against staff if pertinent, along with process or system improvement actions.
- Stage 3 - Client – Any formal complaint made to the law firm in writing by Client will be escalated, investigated and reported on.
- Stage 4 - Law firm - Initial response in writing within 7 working days.
- Stage 5 - Law firm - Final written response (Complaint report) within 28 working days and signpost future options with the Legal Ombudsman.
- If the file is still a ‘live matter’ with a Sale or Purchase not yet completed, the firm will of course continue to progress the file in the normal manner with a blend of email, SMS text and telephone conversations with the Conveyancer / Solicitor responsible at that time.
- Any final written response (Complaint report) will present a summary of the Clients keys points as described within their original complaint email, along with a detailed factual response to each key point.
- The final written response (Complaint report) is a search for the truth and aims to identify the reality of 'who said what'...'who knew what''...'what was done' and 'when'.
Due to the potential serious consequences on staff, any potential mismatch between events as reported by the Client and the factual reality of the situation will be clearly highlighted and disclosed within the final written response (Complaint report).
If you are not satisfied with our handling of your complaint, then you can ask the Legal Ombudsman to consider the complaint - Note: The Legal Ombudsman will receive a copy of the final written response (Complaint report).
Normally, you will need to bring a complaint to the Legal Ombudsman within six months of receiving a final written response from us and within six years from the date of the act or omission about which you are complaining, or three years from the date you should reasonably have known there were grounds for complaint.
You can find out more information about the Legal Ombudsman and filing a complaint with them at the following website:
http://www.legalombudsman.org.uk/helping-the-public/
Disputes may also be referred to an Alternative Dispute Resolution entity which has been certified under the EU Consumer ADR Directive; namely the Ombudsman services ProMediate and small claims mediation.
The following documents published by the Legal Ombudsman are very useful, and help to clarify a number of areas and what is deemed to be fair and reasonable levels of service.
Extracts from the documents below include:
• “Lawyers aren’t mind readers. They will only know that you have a specific concern about something if you tell them.”
• “Your (THE CLIENT) responsibility is essentially to communicate and let the lawyer know key details of the purchase and anything that you are concerned about or want checking out.”
• “Customers must set out their expectations from the start and ensure they’re diligent in checking paperwork, search criteria and, as in Mr H’s case, Land Registry plans.”
https://www.legalombudsman.org.uk/media/5wbkmo0v/ten-helpful-tips-conveyancing.pdf
https://www.legalombudsman.org.uk/media/auag1etp/conveyancing-report.pdf
Finally, as mentioned, we know that buying a house can be an anxious, often deeply emotional experience, and please rest assured that we strive to ensure a fair and reasonable service throughout.
Privacy Policy & Cookies
DP Conveyancing is a law firm which practices English law and is governed by the rules of the Council for Licensed Conveyancers. This web site contains general information about English and European Union law. Although we strive to ensure that the content of these web pages is virus-free and up to date, we make no guarantee as to any of the content or availability of this website including the accuracy, completeness or fitness for any particular purpose, of any content, including archive material, which may be out of date. The contents of this website do not constitute legal or other professional advice. Users should seek appropriate legal guidance upon the specific circumstances of each case before coming to any decision or either taking or refraining from taking any legal action. We disclaim any liability in relation to the use of the content of the web pages.
Links to Third Party Sites
The inclusion of such links does not imply endorsement by us of any content contained on the sites accessible via those links. DP Conveyancing is not responsible for the content of third party websites and excludes all liability for any loss and/or damage that may be incurred by you as a result of your access and/or use of such content. Please note that such third party content may be subject to terms and conditions imposed by the third party owner of the content.
Copyright Notice
The copyright in the contents of this website belongs to DP Conveyancing. All rights are reserved. Permission must be sought from DP Conveyancing before the copying of part or all the contents of this website. However, you may print or download extracts of the printed text contained on this website for your own personal, non-commercial use and provided it is not incorporated (in any way) in any other work or publication. Links to the DP Conveyancing website may only be made with our express permission.
For the avoidance of doubt (but without limitation), no part of this website (or any of its contents) may be distributed, reproduced or otherwise communicated to the public whether in electronic form or hard copy for any purpose.
Quality Assurance
We are committed to the pursuit of excellence in all that we do. Providing a high quality legal service to all our clients is part of that endeavour. When something goes wrong, therefore, we need you to tell us about it so that we can put things right and improve our standards for the future. If you have a complaint, do please contact the Firm with the details. You may rest assured that we will take it seriously, investigate it thoroughly and do our very best to satisfy your concerns.
In the unlikely event that we do not conclude the matter to your satisfaction you may refer it to the Legal Ombudsman, PO Box 6806, Wolverhampton, WV1 9WJ.
Professional Indemnity Insurance
In accordance with the disclosure requirements of The Provision of Services Regulations 2009, our professional indemnity insurance is brokered through Willis and available on request.
We are committed to ensuring that your privacy is protected and understand the need for appropriate protection of all personal information provided by you to us. This Privacy Policy has been created in order that you understand the importance that we attach to this issue and our commitment to ensure that we comply with UK legislation in this area.
Collection, Use and Retention of Information
We collect, use and retain information about you only if we reasonably believe it is justified, required and useful in order to conduct our business effectively and to provide you with information about products and services we believe will be of interest to you. We maintain appropriate security standards and procedures to prevent unauthorised access or disclosure of your information.
Disclosure to Third Parties
We do not disclose your personal information to any third party without your consent except when necessary in relation to any supply of products and/or services by us to you or in order to protect against fraud or any other crime or in the unlikely event that we sell our business then to the purchaser of that business.
Your consent is obtained as part of signing the 'SIGNED AUTHORITY TO PROCEED FORM' in the INSTRUCTION PACK(S). As part of normal day to day Conveyancing, it may be necessary to share your details with Estate Agents, Mortgage Brokers, other solicitors, Search providers, Surveyors, Banks, Freeholders / Managing Agents, NHBC, HMLR, Inland Revenue, Local Authority and Mortgage Lenders.
In certain situations, we may be required to disclose personal information in response to lawful requests by public authorities.
Cookies
Our Website may employ the use of “Cookies”. These are small pieces of information that are stored by your browser on your computer’s hard drive and which tracks information about your use of our website. Most browsers automatically accept Cookies, but you can usually change your browser to prevent that if you wish.
Data Protection Act
Under the Data Protection Act 1998 you may request details of personal information that DP Conveyancing holds about you. An official fee will be payable.
EU Online Dispute Resolution Service
If you are a client and we have made a contract with you by electronic means you may be entitled to use an EU online dispute resolution service to assist with any contractual dispute you may have with us. This service can be found at http://ec.europa.eu/odr.
DP Conveyancing is a law firm which practices English law and is governed by the rules of the Council for Licensed Conveyancers. This web site contains general information about English and European Union law. Although we strive to ensure that the content of these web pages is virus-free and up to date, we make no guarantee as to any of the content or availability of this website including the accuracy, completeness or fitness for any particular purpose, of any content, including archive material, which may be out of date. The contents of this website do not constitute legal or other professional advice. Users should seek appropriate legal guidance upon the specific circumstances of each case before coming to any decision or either taking or refraining from taking any legal action. We disclaim any liability in relation to the use of the content of the web pages.
Links to Third Party Sites
The inclusion of such links does not imply endorsement by us of any content contained on the sites accessible via those links. DP Conveyancing is not responsible for the content of third party websites and excludes all liability for any loss and/or damage that may be incurred by you as a result of your access and/or use of such content. Please note that such third party content may be subject to terms and conditions imposed by the third party owner of the content.
Copyright Notice
The copyright in the contents of this website belongs to DP Conveyancing. All rights are reserved. Permission must be sought from DP Conveyancing before the copying of part or all the contents of this website. However, you may print or download extracts of the printed text contained on this website for your own personal, non-commercial use and provided it is not incorporated (in any way) in any other work or publication. Links to the DP Conveyancing website may only be made with our express permission.
For the avoidance of doubt (but without limitation), no part of this website (or any of its contents) may be distributed, reproduced or otherwise communicated to the public whether in electronic form or hard copy for any purpose.
Quality Assurance
We are committed to the pursuit of excellence in all that we do. Providing a high quality legal service to all our clients is part of that endeavour. When something goes wrong, therefore, we need you to tell us about it so that we can put things right and improve our standards for the future. If you have a complaint, do please contact the Firm with the details. You may rest assured that we will take it seriously, investigate it thoroughly and do our very best to satisfy your concerns.
In the unlikely event that we do not conclude the matter to your satisfaction you may refer it to the Legal Ombudsman, PO Box 6806, Wolverhampton, WV1 9WJ.
Professional Indemnity Insurance
In accordance with the disclosure requirements of The Provision of Services Regulations 2009, our professional indemnity insurance is brokered through Willis and available on request.
We are committed to ensuring that your privacy is protected and understand the need for appropriate protection of all personal information provided by you to us. This Privacy Policy has been created in order that you understand the importance that we attach to this issue and our commitment to ensure that we comply with UK legislation in this area.
Collection, Use and Retention of Information
We collect, use and retain information about you only if we reasonably believe it is justified, required and useful in order to conduct our business effectively and to provide you with information about products and services we believe will be of interest to you. We maintain appropriate security standards and procedures to prevent unauthorised access or disclosure of your information.
Disclosure to Third Parties
We do not disclose your personal information to any third party without your consent except when necessary in relation to any supply of products and/or services by us to you or in order to protect against fraud or any other crime or in the unlikely event that we sell our business then to the purchaser of that business.
Your consent is obtained as part of signing the 'SIGNED AUTHORITY TO PROCEED FORM' in the INSTRUCTION PACK(S). As part of normal day to day Conveyancing, it may be necessary to share your details with Estate Agents, Mortgage Brokers, other solicitors, Search providers, Surveyors, Banks, Freeholders / Managing Agents, NHBC, HMLR, Inland Revenue, Local Authority and Mortgage Lenders.
In certain situations, we may be required to disclose personal information in response to lawful requests by public authorities.
Cookies
Our Website may employ the use of “Cookies”. These are small pieces of information that are stored by your browser on your computer’s hard drive and which tracks information about your use of our website. Most browsers automatically accept Cookies, but you can usually change your browser to prevent that if you wish.
Data Protection Act
Under the Data Protection Act 1998 you may request details of personal information that DP Conveyancing holds about you. An official fee will be payable.
EU Online Dispute Resolution Service
If you are a client and we have made a contract with you by electronic means you may be entitled to use an EU online dispute resolution service to assist with any contractual dispute you may have with us. This service can be found at http://ec.europa.eu/odr.