I am getting a mortgage offer from Nat West. I intend to retain the legal services of a Licensed Conveyancer in Thornbury. Does the Nat West Conveyancing panel exclude Licensed Conveyancers?

The Nat West conveyancing panel is, like many other lenders, associated to the CML or BSA, open to Licensed Conveyancers regulated by the Council of Licensed Conveyancers.

IfI was to acquire a simple residential housein Thornbury mortgage fee and dispense with a survey and no conveyancing searches how much would I expect to to save on my conveyancing in Thornbury?

Any savings you would achieve will be isolated to the Thornbury conveyancing searches. Your conveyancer is obliged to do the vast majority of work - money laundering, communicating with the sellers conveyancing practitioner, stamp duty return, register the title etc. A marginal saving might be made by not having to register a charge but it will not be meaningful.

Should our lawyer be making enquiries regarding flooding as part of the conveyancing in Thornbury.

Flooding is a growing risk for lawyers carrying out conveyancing in Thornbury. There are those who purchase a property in Thornbury, completely expectant that at some time, it may be flooded. However, aside from the physical damage, where a house is at risk of flooding, it may be difficult to obtain a mortgage, suitable building insurance, or dispose of the premises. There are steps that can be taken as part of the conveyancing process to forewarn the purchaser.

Lawyers are not best placed to give advice on flood risk, however there are a various checks that may be undertaken by the buyer or by their lawyers which will give them a better appreciation of the risks in Thornbury. The conventional set of information sent to a purchaser’s conveyancer (where the solicitors are adopting what is known as the Conveyancing Protocol) incorporates a usual inquiry of the owner to discover if the property has suffered from flooding. If flooding has previously occurred and is not notified by the owner, then a buyer may commence a claim for damages as a result of such an inaccurate response. A purchaser’s solicitors may also order an environmental report. This should disclose if there is a recorded flood risk. If so, additional inquiries will need to be made.

I need to instruct a conveyancing practitioner in Thornbury for my sale. Can I check a firm’s record with the profession’s regulator?

One may read documented Solicitor Regulator Association (SRA) decisions stemming from inquisitions started on or after Jan 2008. Visit Check a solicitor's record. To find details Pre 2008, or to check a firm's history, phone 0870 606 2555, 08.00 - 18.00 Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and 09.30 - 18.00 Tuesday. International callers, call +44 (0)121 329 6800. The regulator may recorded call for training reasons.

My conveyancers in Thornbury have advised me that they can not locate my conveyancing file. To assist with my purchase I took out a mortgage with the lender. Is it case that being on the lender conveyancing panel they need to have retained the file for a prescribed period?

It very much depends from lender to lender but many of the Terms and Conditions of Conveyancing Panel Appointment require the file to be held for a period of 6 years. That being said we have not seen a copy of the lender Conveyancing Panel Terms. It might be worth you contacting the bank directly.