Clare Yates shared with us details of how a conveyancer protested about how she was unfairly complained about due to a failed legal sale. The conveyancer was acting for the seller and the property had a substantial conservatory which there was no planning permission for. The conservatory was part of the kitchen so an integral part of the house.
The conveyancer was trying to get retrospective planning permission and deliberately kept the estate agents in the dark only offering updates when it suited her. The estate agent kept demanding information. The solicitor bluntly informed them of the situation with the lack of planning permission but advised they were dealing with it but couldn’t offer a timescale. The Estate agent decided to help by contacting the council to see what could be done, however the response from the council was not positive ordering for the conservatory to be demolished leaving the owners with no sale and with no working kitchen.
The sellers complained and the conveyancer was disciplined. All she needed to do was to clearly update the estate agent on the situation instead of choosing to keep them in the dark.
Top Tips
Don’t keep people in the dark on purpose as people become frightened.
Make sure all parties involved know and understand what you are doing and let them know when they can and can’t help.
Always state you are chasing and being proactive and offer timescales where possible. If you state you are ‘waiting’ on something it can imply you are not actively pursuing.
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