About Conveyancing

Author: Simon Seaton

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Simon Seaton is a former UK solicitor and a director of Lexsure. He has assisted hundreds of law firms, from small practices to firms ranked in the top 500, with compliance needs spanning SRA requirements, mortgage lender instructions, CQS and anti-money laundering. His AML experience includes developing policies, procedures and systems, and conducting independent audits of firms’ policies, controls and procedures. He has also delivered hundreds of webinars and seminars for lawyers and mortgage lenders on compliance, conveyancing risk and AML. Over the years, Simon has liaised on AML and risk management matters with organisations including UK Finance, the Bank of England, the Metropolitan Police, the National Crime Agency and the Financial Conduct Authority, as well as major mortgage lenders and professional indemnity insurers.

  • Property Misdescription: Did You Buy What Was Advertised?

    Property misdescription can become a serious concern when an owner tries to sell or remortgage. A room, garden, parking space or access route presented as part of the property may not match the legal documents.

    You may have used it for years without difficulty. Then a buyer’s solicitor asks a question that changes your understanding of what you actually purchased.

    The immediate task is to establish the discrepancy. Questions about who may be responsible come next, once the documents, statements and original advice have been examined.

    Originally published on 10 December 2009. Updated on 3 October 2026. This article focuses on property transactions in England and Wales.

    Does the property differ from what you thought you bought?

    If a sale has raised questions about your garden, driveway or the land included in your title, start by understanding the documents and the advice you received.

    Read When I Bought’s boundary and title plan problems guide, or tell When I Bought what has happened.

    What can a property misdescription involve?

    The concern may be an inaccurate statement, missing information or a difference between the marketing description and the legal position. Examples include:

    • A garden or parking space described as belonging to the property when the title documents suggest otherwise.
    • A room used as part of a flat but excluded from its lease.
    • A driveway described as providing access without clarity about the legal rights.
    • Statements about permitted use that conflict with restrictions in the documents.
    • Promises about facilities or later development phases that require examination against the contractual commitments.

    These are examples of questions to investigate, not automatic findings of wrongdoing. The wording, context, documents and circumstances all matter.

    The sales particulars and the legal title may tell different stories

    Marketing particulars help describe a property, but they should not be treated as conclusive evidence of legal ownership or rights.

    For a freehold property, the register, title plan and relevant deeds may need to be considered together. For a leasehold property, the lease and its plan are central to establishing the extent of the property let to the leaseholder.

    Our article on a room that was not included in the lease the buyer acquired illustrates the consequences of a mismatch between the sales description and the legal documents.

    Is a boundary mismatch proof of misdescription?

    Not necessarily. Most registered title plans show general boundaries rather than the precise legal line. An apparent difference between the plan and a physical feature needs interpretation.

    The concern may instead be a substantial difference in ownership, an uncertain boundary or an actual disagreement with a neighbour.

    Read our guide to boundary problems when selling a house before treating every plan discrepancy as evidence that the property was misdescribed.

    Who might be responsible?

    The original article raised an important question: a problem discovered after purchase should not automatically be attributed to the conveyancing solicitor.

    Different parties may have different responsibilities:

    • The seller: statements and replies given during the transaction may require examination.
    • The developer: marketing representations and contractual promises may be relevant.
    • The estate agent: the accuracy and completeness of information supplied may need assessment.
    • The conveyancer: the investigation, scope of the retainer and advice about material discrepancies may matter.
    • The surveyor: physical findings and the scope of the survey may also be relevant.

    More than one party may be involved. Establishing responsibility requires evidence of what happened, the applicable duties and the consequences.

    What should you retrieve from the purchase file?

    Preserve the documents that show what was represented and what was explained:

    • The original property listing, brochure, floor plan and photographs.
    • Relevant emails or written statements from the seller, agent or developer.
    • The contract, lease, title documents and plans.
    • The seller’s property information form and replies to enquiries.
    • Your survey, Report on Title and correspondence with your advisers.
    • The new enquiry or report identifying the discrepancy.

    Identify any statement that materially influenced your decision and explain why it mattered. Keep the original documents rather than relying solely on your recollection.

    Our article on client understanding of the Report on Title explains why a signed acknowledgement is only one part of the evidence.

    Which property misdescription rules apply today?

    The Property Misdescriptions Act 1991 was repealed in 2013. Its repeal did not remove protection against misleading property marketing.

    The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 now contains unfair commercial practices provisions applying to practices occurring from 6 April 2025. These address misleading actions and omissions by traders, among other conduct.

    See the Competition and Markets Authority’s unfair commercial practices guidance.

    An older purchase must be assessed under the law applicable at the relevant time. Consumer trading rules also do not automatically determine a private claim against a seller or a professional adviser.

    A separate question can arise where land included in the sale has possessory title. That class of title does not, by itself, establish that the property was misdescribed. Our guide to possessory title and the lender requirements applicable when you bought explains how the register, historical instructions and purchase file can help clarify the position.

    Why the original lender instructions may matter

    If the discrepancy concerns the property’s extent or legal rights, the original mortgage lender’s instructions may form part of the investigation.

    The Lexsure Lender Archive’s boundary problems page provides a route to dated lender-specific records. Consider them alongside the general instructions, mortgage offer and actual conveyancing file.

    A historical record cannot establish what was advertised, what advice was given or whether anyone is liable. It helps answer a narrower question about the lender’s recorded instructions.

    Take advice before agreeing a solution

    Ask your current conveyancer to explain the discrepancy and what the buyer or lender requires. Clarifying documents, securing rights or changing the legal arrangements may involve different processes.

    Do not assume that an indemnity policy transfers ownership or delivers something promised in the original sale description.

    If you are considering a complaint or claim, obtain advice promptly. Different routes have different deadlines. Our guide to Legal Ombudsman time limits addresses service complaints; those rules should not be used to calculate a court claim deadline.

    Start with what was promised and what the documents show

    If a problem has emerged since purchase, explain what you believed you were buying, what has now been questioned and how it affects your sale or remortgage.

    Tell When I Bought what has happened.

    Contacting When I Bought does not pause complaint or court deadlines.

  • Conveyancing Referral Fees: Panorama, the CLC Review and Marketing Alternatives

    Originally published December 2009. Updated October 2026.

    Conveyancing referral fees have attracted scrutiny for many years. Our original December 2009 article reported plans by the Legal Services Consumer Panel to examine referral payments. BBC Panorama’s 2025 investigation and the Council for Licensed Conveyancers’ subsequent thematic review have brought consumer choice and transparency back into focus.

    For conveyancing firms, there are two practical questions: are existing referral arrangements properly managed, and could a broader marketing strategy reduce dependence on a small number of introducers?

    What did BBC Panorama investigate?

    BBC Panorama’s Undercover Estate Agent, broadcast on 14 July 2025, raised concerns about conditional selling and estate agency sales tactics. These included pressure on consumers to use associated services.

    The distinction matters: the programme’s allegations about estate agents were not findings that every referred conveyancing instruction, or every firm paying a referral fee, involved misconduct.

    In its July 2025 response to Panorama, the CLC expressed concern about consumer choice and pricing transparency. It also said it had no evidence that practices as unethical as those highlighted were prevalent in the sector it regulated.

    What has the CLC referral review found?

    The CLC published interim findings on 2 June 2026. Its review examined 12 practices with referral arrangements, alongside regulatory information and stakeholder input.

    Five of those practices could not produce written referral agreements. Client disclosures were not always complete or available for review.

    The CLC recognised that referral arrangements can serve a legitimate purpose, while identifying the need for earlier disclosure, clearer documentation and stronger monitoring. The sample should not be treated as a finding about every conveyancing practice.

    Read the CLC’s summary of its interim findings. Its review update states that the survey closed on 25 September 2026 and that work informed by the responses will be published in 2027.

    Are referral fees to estate agents unethical?

    A referral fee does not, by itself, answer that question. The arrangement needs to be considered alongside disclosure, independence, service quality and the client’s freedom to choose.

    We explored this distinction in our earlier article, Are referral fees to estate agents unethical?

    Our related post on conveyancing referral fees, CLC oversight and consumer choice examines the wider regulatory debate.

    Review what clients are told about referral arrangements

    Solicitors should check the applicable SRA requirements. Paragraph 5.1 of the Code of Conduct addresses disclosure of relevant financial interests and fee-sharing arrangements, written fee-sharing agreements and how introducers acquire clients.

    CLC-regulated practices should review the requirements applicable to them rather than assume the SRA wording applies unchanged.

    A practical review should ask:

    • Does the client understand the introducer’s financial interest?
    • Is the disclosure clear and provided at a useful stage?
    • Are the relevant arrangements properly documented?
    • Can the client compare the total price and service offered?
    • Does the firm investigate concerns about pressure or misleading statements by an introducer?

    Use the SRA Code of Conduct and the CLC’s published materials when reviewing your procedures.

    Why conveyancing firms need a broader marketing strategy

    Even a well-managed referral relationship creates a commercial dependency if it supplies a large proportion of the firm’s work. Changes in the introducer’s ownership, preferred providers or commercial terms can quickly affect the pipeline.

    Firms should therefore be more creative about how prospective clients find them. Useful approaches include maintaining contact with previous clients, publishing clear answers to common property questions and making lender-panel information easy to find.

    The opportunity is to explain why a particular firm suits the client’s transaction: relevant experience, communication, transparent pricing and the ability to act for the proposed mortgage lender.

    Where LenderPanel.com fits into conveyancing marketing

    A buyer looking for a conveyancer often has a specific question: “Can this firm act for my mortgage lender?” A directory organised around lender-panel membership addresses that practical need.

    LenderPanel.com enables consumers to look for conveyancing firms by lender and location. For participating firms, it offers an additional route to prospective clients who are actively looking for a suitable conveyancer.

    A listing should be supported by accurate panel information, clear service details and prompt responses to enquiries. It should form part of a wider marketing plan, with results assessed against the firm’s own costs and capacity.

    Help clients find your firm by mortgage lender

    Explore a LenderPanel.com listing as an additional source of conveyancing enquiries. Review the listing terms and keep your firm’s panel and contact information accurate.

    Explore listing your firm

    Make lender-panel information part of the client journey

    Panel eligibility should be checked before the client commits to a firm. A directory is a starting point; current eligibility for the particular lender and transaction should be confirmed.

    Our guide explains how to check whether a solicitor is on a lender’s panel.

    Referral relationships and direct marketing both need clear communication. Firms that make their suitability, fees and service easy to understand give prospective clients a stronger basis for choosing them.