Conveyancing Help

[bad company]

Are there any conveyancers around?

My sister and I are selling our late mother’s property in Dorset. We’re hopefully getting close to exchanging contracts which is obviously good news. Our solicitor has asked us to ‘drop into the office to sign the sale contract. I’ve explained that that means a 400 mile round trip for me but they seem to be insisting that the contract is signed at their offices. Surely that’s not a requirement.

They’re also saying they need to see my identity documents but that was all done last year with another solicitor at the same firm who handled our mother’s will & probate.

Any thoughts?

[Cosworth4388]

My Step son is currently buying a flat , he is exchanging contracts tomorrow , all his is documents for Id I think he scannned and then emailed , contracts arrived in the post yesterday he signed them and I popped them into the solicitors this afternoon , they are only a few miles away but he does not have a car yet .
He will be moving in next Friday (31st) and he has never met the solicitor OR visited their offices .

[bladebloke]

There’s absolutely no need for you to sign the contract at their offices.

This will be about them verifying your identity. They have to do this for both anti money laundering and Land Registry purposes.Tell them that a visit in person absolutely isn’t in happening, and that they’ll need to talk you through the alternatives.

[bad company]

Cosworth4388 said:

My Step son is currently buying a flat , he is exchanging contracts tomorrow , all his is documents for Id I think he scannned and then emailed , contracts arrived in the post yesterday he signed them and I popped them into the solicitors this afternoon , they are only a few miles away but he does not have a car yet .
He will be moving in next Friday (31st) and he has never met the solicitor OR visited their offices .

That’s what I thought, thank you.

[GT03ROB]

It's nonsense. I signed my purchase contract several thousand miles away from my conveyancers office.

[bladebloke]

bad company said:

That’s what I thought, thank you.

You’re welcome. Glad to help.

[jimbobs]

I’ve just sold my late sister’s property. Signed all of the documents remotely (they are c. 100 miles away). They did ask me to get a local solicitor to verify my ID for them though. Fortunately I work in an office full of lawyers so that wasn’t a problem.

[Pro Bono]

Your `solicitor' (although s/he probably isn't a solicitor, merely an unqualified assistant) is an idiot. They obviously know where you live, so how could anyone with half a brain cell ask you to `drop in' as though you live just down the road?

Anyway, the bottom line is that NO, you do NOT have to meet the conveyancer in person. They will have mechanisms in place for dealing with remote clients, and if they didn't do their AML checks at the outset that's their problem, not yours.

[roadsmash]

They may require the original signed copy (rather than printed/scanned copies) of the documents. This is becoming more and more uncommon... but some conveyancers are still stuck in their ways.

Regardless, they/you can send these by post. You don’t need to attend their office in person.

Tell them to stop being silly.

[bad company]

When I explained that it was difficult for me to attend due to 400 mile journey etc., the solicitor replied:-

Unfortunately I will need to see you to sign as I will need to take your ID at the same time (passport/driving licence/utility bill/ bank statement) at the same time to confirm I have verified who you are. If you could let me know when would be best for you, given how long the trip will be I will try my best to work to your time frame?

[roadsmash]

That is absolutely absurd. They are just being difficult!

Have you at all been unkind or unfavourable to them during the process?

I would be keen to make the trip and have a right fking go at them when I get there.

[Pit Pony]

bladebloke said:

There’s absolutely no need for you to sign the contract at their offices.

This will be about them verifying your identity. They have to do this for both anti money laundering and Land Registry purposes.Tell them that a visit in person absolutely isn’t in happening, and that they’ll need to talk you through the alternatives.

The post office can verify your identity. I had to do it for a contract, as part of security clearance. It wasnt expensive.

We are buying a house and its 80 miles away but 20 miles from where i work. I took an early dart and took both passports snd a council.tax bill over one afternoon.
They said we dont need to come in to sign when the contract is ready.

[mcdjl]

Change solicitors? I used an on line lot recommend by my agent. They were happy for me to put signed stuff/copies in the post to them. It turned out they were 200 yards from my office, they still never saw me. My brother's solicitor didn't get/want any original signed stuff, only scans.

[GT03ROB]

bad company said:

When I explained that it was difficult for me to attend due to 400 mile journey etc., the solicitor replied:-

Unfortunately I will need to see you to sign as I will need to take your ID at the same time (passport/driving licence/utility bill/ bank statement) at the same time to confirm I have verified who you are. If you could let me know when would be best for you, given how long the trip will be I will try my best to work to your time frame?

No quite ridiculous. It is not necessary. She received scanned copies of my passport. Everything was done online. She required originals of the contract documents but that was it.

[bad company]

roadsmash said:

That is absolutely absurd. They are just being difficult!

Have you at all been unkind or unfavourable to them during the process?

I would be keen to make the trip and have a right fking go at them when I get there.

Nothing unfavourable, so far the transaction has gone smoothly. I replied last evening:-


I don’t understand your email. There is no requirement for the property sale contract to be signed in your office. I can sign it and get It witnessed locally, many law firms work this way.

You already have my identification documentation. I did that with ******** (probate solicitor at the same firm) when she dealt with the probate. I don’t see why that has to happen again.

[surveyor]

I've had this a few times. One solution was for a local solicitor to verify ID and witness signature. They were used to this and had a charity pot to collect the fees.

[bad company]

Update. The solicitor phoned this afternoon and explained that they don’t like sending contracts by post due to risk of fraud but will do so. It can be signed by me and witnessed by anyone I’m not related to. She’d also found the id stuff I took into their offices last year.

Thanks for the help everyone.

[hutchst]

The estate agent I'm using to sell my house refused to even put it on the market for me until I flew back from the Middle East 3,000 miles each way to show him my passport personally in his office.

[bad company]

hutchst said:

The estate agent I'm using to sell my house refused to even put it on the market for me until I flew back from the Middle East 3,000 miles each way to show him my passport personally in his office.

Why not just use a different Estate Agent? Mine was happy with documents scanned by me and sent by email.

[Cosworth4388]

bad company said:

Update. The solicitor phoned this afternoon and explained that they don’t like sending contracts by post due to risk of fraud but will do so. It can be signed by me and witnessed by anyone I’m not related to. She’d also found the id stuff I took into their offices last year.

Thanks for the help everyone.

That’s good news although you had to push it a bit to get an explanation , and it’s nit hard if they are worried to send the contracts special delivery etc