Terms of Engagement.

These Terms of Engagement (“these Terms”) are intended to provide more detail about our services, standards, charges, particular issues involved in the transaction and an explanation of our responsibilities and our complaints procedure: Please refer to your written engagement letter for full particulars.

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Importance of these Terms

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Please read these Terms of Engagement because they contain important information about our costs and your rights under these Terms.

Our responsibilities will include:

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Reviewing your matter regularly. Advising you on any changes in the law during the course of your matter. Advising of any circumstances and risks of which we are aware or consider to be reasonably foreseeable that could affect your matter.

Your responsibilities will include:

Providing us with clear, timely and accurate instructions. Providing us with all documents and information required to complete the matter in a timely manner. Please note that our services are conditional on you complying with these Terms. In the event that you breach these Terms, we reserve the right to terminate all work on your behalf without further notice.

Matters outside the scope of our engagement:

The duties and responsibilities of this Company under these Terms shall be limited to those expressly set out in these Terms and for the avoidance of doubt shall not include Tax or Financial Advice.

Level of services

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We shall endeavour to keep you updated on a regular basis as to the progression of the matter, and as to changes in the law either by telephone, email or letter.

Electronic communications

During the conduct of the Engagement we may wish to communicate electronically with each other. However, the electronic transmission of information cannot be guaranteed to be secure or error free, as it will be transmitted over a public network, and such information could be intercepted, corrupted, lost, destroyed, arrive late or incomplete or otherwise be adversely affected or unsafe to use. We shall each be responsible for protecting our own interests in relation to electronic communications. Neither of us (including our respective partners, directors, employees, agents or servants) shall be liable to each other on the basis, whether in contract, tort (including negligence) or otherwise, in respect of any error, damage, loss or omission arising from or in connection with the electronic communication of information between us or in reliance on such information.

Fees

The amount of our fees will be agreed at the time we commence acting on your behalf and will be confirmed in writing. Any estimate obtained through our website is indicative only and will be subject to verification.

Money on account and interest payments and Commission

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We may from time to time require you to pay us a reasonable sum on account of costs. This will be held in our client account and we shall account to you for interest in accordance with the above policy. We may use your money held on account of costs to pay expenses incurred on your behalf even though not yet invoiced to you.

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In accordance with the CLC Accounts Rules it is the firm’s policy to account to its clients for interest on a fair and reasonable basis for both the client and the firm. When we receive monies on behalf of a client it will be paid into a general client account with HSBC PLC who is the firm’s banker. This general client bank account will hold pooled amounts for different matters and clients. These will usually be based on client money being held in an instant access account to facilitate a transaction.

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Clients are unlikely to receive as much interest as might have been obtained had they held and invested the money themselves as a result of our needing to have instant access to funds. 

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The rate of interest paid to clients on money held in the general client account is in line with HSBC PLC’s published rates on their Business Instant Access Account.  Interest on general client money is calculated on cleared funds on a daily basis and compounded and applied annually on the 30th September. Where client requirements demand, the calculation and application will be made on agreed dates (e.g. closure of the matter). Our Accounts department will prepare the necessary calculation as instructed by the Fee Earner of the matter. In the event that the calculated total interest accruing to a client for the duration of a matter is less than £20 then no interest will be paid to the client on the basis that it is a de minimis amount. The firm takes the view that any amount below £20 is reasonably retained by the firm to cover the administrative cost of dealing with client funds.  Interest is paid by HSBC PLC to the firm on the aggregate of all client money held in the general client account and, subject to any interest paid to clients as above, is for the benefit of the firm. On occasions interest may accrue on Client’s monies held by this firm pending the completion of a conveyancing transaction. Fees quoted in such transactions are made on the basis that any interest that may accrue will be retained by this firm to avoid the necessity of increasing our level of charges. Unless you specifically object to this provision you will be authorising retention of this interest by this firm. If the bank in which the firm holds funds should fail we reserve the right to disclose to the FSCS the names and other details of clients whose money is held there in order for those clients to claim compensation up to the applicable limit, currently £85,000.  We will not be liable to you or any third party for any loss or damage suffered as a result of any act, omission, fraud, delay, negligence, insolvency or default of any bank, financial institution, clearing or payments system nor that of the directors, officers, employees, agents or representatives of any of the foregoing.

This policy will be reviewed from time to time, especially in the light of any changes to interest rates.  In circumstances where the Firm is in receipt of commissions, we will advise you of such commissions earned from introductions made by us insurance commissions. We will not account to you for such commissions.

Introductions

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We are obliged to advise you that where we have a financial arrangement with an introducer (“the Introducer”) we will pay the Introducer a sum equating to 20% of our profit costs as an introduction fee upon completion of this transaction. Please note that this payment is made by us to the Introducer and you are not responsible for this payment in any way. Any advice given to you by us will be independent and you are free to raise questions on all aspects of the transactions with us.

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Any information disclosed by you to us will not be disclosed to the Introducer unless you consent. Where we are acting for the Introducer in the same matter and a conflict of interest arises we might be obliged to cease acting and you are free to choose another provider to carry out the transaction and are not obliged to use us. If you have any queries relating to Introductions please do not hesitate to contact us.

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Invoicing and payment

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Property transactions: We will normally send you our bill following the exchange of contracts and payment is required on a purchase prior to completion, and at completion on a sale. If sufficient funds are available on completion, and we have sent you a bill, we will deduct our charges and expenses from the funds.

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Administration of estates: We will normally submit an interim bill at regular stages during the administration, starting with the obtaining of a Grant. The final account will be prepared when the Estate Accounts are ready for approval.

Other matters: we will submit invoices to you on a monthly basis or at the end of a distinct section of the instructions, whichever is the sooner. All invoices are payable on demand and we request payment in full within 30 days. If an invoice is not paid within 30 days, we may charge interest on the balance outstanding at the rate of 8% per annum. You agree that we are authorised to apply any funds held on your behalf in our client account (but not those held for a specific purpose) towards the discharge of our outstanding bills.

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Disbursements

In addition to our above fees you will be charged for any additional disbursements which have been incurred. Disbursements are expenses i.e. payments we have to make to a third party on your behalf. 

When we confirm out instructions with you we will provide you with our best estimate of what disbursements we anticipate having to pay during the course of the matter on your behalf. Any and all disbursements we pay for you will be your sole responsibility to repay to us.

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Abortive Matters

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Should our instructions in this matter be terminated for any reason we reserve the right to levy an account for the time spent on the matter to the date of termination, including any disbursements actually incurred to that point. If any documents are prepared at your instruction but remain unexecuted we reserve the right to raise an account for 75% of the fee quoted above. Accounts must be paid upon receipt. 

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Insurance Mediation (providing exempt financial services)

We are not authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority. However, we are included on the register maintained by the Financial Conduct Authority so that we may carry on insurance mediation activity, which is broadly the advising on, selling and administration of insurance contracts.  This part of our business, including arrangements for complaints or redress if something goes wrong, is regulated by the Council for Licensed Conveyancers. The register can be accessed via the Financial Services website at www.fsa.gov.uk/register. The Council for Licensed Conveyancers is a designated professional body for the purposes of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000.

The Legal Ombudsman is the independent complaints handling body that deals with complaints made about the provision of legal services.  If you are unhappy with any insurance advice you receive from us, you should raise your concerns with either of these bodies.