conveyancing - failiure to put in writing

[tali122]

during a house purchase my solicitor claimed that i agreed over the phone to exchange of contracts(EOC) and end completIon(EC) on same day - i refute this, however, EVEN supposing i did agree over the phone - surely my solicitor should have put all this in writing and something that perhaps i should i signed even " i agree to exchange of contracts and end completion to occur on DD/M/YYYY" , i got all other paperwork , land registry , inland revenue etc but nothing stating EOC and EC dates.I even put in writing that EOC should proceed as soon as my funds clear - i made no mention at all of EC.
I even sent an email the day before the wrong EC(which i was completely unaware of)) occured requesting EC 2 -3 weeks from EOC.
Surely it was their responsibilty to confirm EOC and EC dates not only in writing but they also failed to phone me even to confirm the (incorrect) instructions.
If information such as EOC and EC dates is agreed over phone then i might aswell agree verbally to me agreeing to E0C without signing any paperwork at all.
They have offered �40 as a goodwill gesture , im thinking of using which legal services as i feel they have made significant errors
advice appreciated

[lady_p_gold]

Well I have bought and sold a lot of houses and I have often just been told the day of exchange when it has actually happened, I don't think I have ever had a letter, that is because it is not an exact science and there is often a chain etc. etc. and everything has to be in place for it all to happen. It is not usual to have completion on the same day although it is not unheard of, and most people are rather pleased to get things all signed sealed and over with after an often stressful time. To be honest your funds should be there ready for the exchange, and if you are that far down the line your solicitor would naturally assume that you were expecting to complete the purchase. When instructing them to assist you in the purchase, weren't you aiming for just that ... a purchase ? If so I don't really see that you are being quite practical about it, although whether you have a legal claim is another matter.

[buildersmate]

Much as Lady P, I think they technically made an error but were trying to work in your best interests. I wouldn't have expected to agree it in writing with my legal rep - just over the phone. Obviously at exchange a date is contractually determined for completion.
I guess the major thing you have lost is the interest on the Completion Monies for 2-3 weeks. At �150000 sum, this is about �100 per week of interest. So �40 of goodwill compensation goes someway towards this. However since the money would have to be in your solicitor's escrow account before Completion anyway, I'm not sure that you'd have had access to interest-bearing accounts anyway.

[dzug]

You've got two problems - proof of what happened and quantifying your loss, if any

i refute this

Well no you don't - you deny it. If you refute it it means you provide evidence that it isn't so, not just deny it.
Short of a recording of the phone conversation there's no proof either way. The solicitor is likely to have made a note of the conversation which, even if mistaken, is more likely to be believed than your memory.


And as buildersmate says, what have you actually lost other than a worrying week or two?

[Nether Edge]

Exchange of contracts creates binding legal relationship. In some cases, depending on contract, P may need to arrange immediate property insurance- so it can make a difference if P isn't told that contracts exchenged and something dreadful happens between then and completion!

[tali122]

i need to add that i could not move into the property immediately -hence my email for 2-3 weeks after EOC , but because of the solicitors EC error - and what members here are seeming to forget is my repayment MORTGAGE starts( �550 a month - would have been far far more were it not for a hefty deposit ) - and i cant move in - so its COST ME several hundred pounds in wasted mortgage payments(the mortgage should start when i can physically move in )
the solicitor also said the other side pushed ahead and agreed the EC was okay ........ would be nice if they consulted me aswell - after all im their client

[dzug]

We only 'forgot' it because you didn't bother to mention it. You seemed more concerned to get at the solicitors about the errors than the consequences of the errors.

[themas]

I would say that any competent prudent solicitor would make absolutely certain that you had agreed - even if only over the phone - to something so unusual as EOC & EC on the same day. The fact that they have offered you anything does seem to suggest that they realise they did not do this properly, or at least that there is some doubt about it.

If you feel strongly enough, you could quantify your actual loss, make a complaint to the firm's complaints partner and then go to the Solicitor's Complaints Service (look at Law Society site) if not satisfied.

[Peter Pedant]

Oh, you can complain to the Senior Partner of the firm involved andsay somehting like you dontant to pay part of the bill because you are out of pocket.

I did this when Peter and Paul were joint owners and I paid to have the house put in Peter's name and the solicitor put it all in Paul's. Luckily Paul had a sense of humour and it was unwound, ut I didn pay for that conveuyance.

[tali122]

themas has thankfully hit the nail on the head and is spot on, at a very conservative estimate the consequences of the errors are around �350 in unncessary mortgage payments
and themas has grasped that the solicitor has realized an error , and the senior partner told me "we dont make much from the conveyancing anyway" and "because its xmas we will give you a goodwill payment" - pure desperation