Bank of Scotland Private Conveyancing Panel Recently Asked Questions from members of the public
What is the rationale as to why all property lawyers aren't included on the Bank of Scotland Private Solicitor panel?
Bank of Scotland Private and other lenders ordinarily restrict either the type or the number of conveyancing solicitors on their approved list of lawyers. Typical examples of such restriction(s) being that a firm must have two or more partners. In addition to restricting the type of firm, some have decided to limit the number of firms they use to represent them. You should note that Bank of Scotland Private have no responsibility for the quality of advice provided by any member of Bank of Scotland Private Conveyancer Panel. Mortgage fraud was a key driver in the rationalisation of conveyancing panels a few years ago and whilst there are differing views about the extent of solicitor involvement in some of that fraud. Statistics from the Land Registry reveal that thousands of law firms only carry out one or two conveyances a year. Those supporting conveyancing panel cuts ask why law firms should have the right to be on a Lender panel when clearly, Conveyancing is not their speciality? To put it another way; would you want a conveyancing solicitor to represent you if you were charged with a crime; probably not.
My partner and I intend to remortgage our flat with Bank of Scotland Private. We have a son 19 who lives with us. The solicitor on the Bank of Scotland Private conveyancing panel requested us to identify anyone over the age of 17 other than ourselves who reside at the property. The solicitor has now sent a form for our son to sign, waiving any legal rights in the event that the flat is forfeited by the lender. I have two questions (1) Is this document specific to the Bank of Scotland Private conveyancing panel as he did not need to sign this form when we purchased 4 years ago (2) In signing this form is our son in any way compromising his right to inherit the property?
On the face of it your lawyer has done nothing wrong as it is established procedure for any occupier who is aged 17 or over to sign the necessary Consent Form, which is purely to state that any rights he has in the property are postponed and secondary to Bank of Scotland Private .This is solely used to protect the Bank of Scotland Private if the property were re-possessed so that in such circumstances, your son would be legally obliged to leave.
It does not impact your son’s right to inherit the apartment. Please note that if your son were to inherit and the mortgage in favour of Bank of Scotland Private had not been discharged, he would be liable to take over the loan or pay it off, but other than that, there is nothing stopping him from keeping the property in accordance with your will or the rules of intestacy.
What tools are available to search for a local solicitor on the Bank of Scotland Private conveyancing panel? I have a car and am prepared to travel up to 25 miles to meet the solicitor.
Feel free to make use of the find a conveyancing panel tool on this page. Please choose the lender and your location and you will see a number of lawyer located nearest you. Alternatively you can type in the name of your proposed law firm and see if they are listed as being on the Bank of Scotland Private solicitor panel.
What happens if my lawyer’s firm is removed from the Bank of Scotland Private Solicitor panel in advance of the completion date?
The first thing to point out is that, this is very unlikely to happen. In most cases even where a law firm is removed off of a panel the lender would allow the completion to go ahead as the lender would appreciate the difficulties that they would place you in if you have ti instruct a new solicitor days before completion. In a worst case scenario where the lender insists that you instruct a new firm then it is possible for a very good lawyer to expedite the conveyancing albeit that you may pay a significant premium for this. The analogous situation is where a buyer instructs a lawyer, exchanges contracts and the law firm is shut down by the regulator such as the SRA. Again, in this situation you can find lawyers who can troubleshoot their way to bring the conveyancing to a satisfactory conclusion - albeit for a fee.
Do conveyancing lawyers on the Bank of Scotland Private conveyancing panel work on a no move no charge basis?
On the whole there are no requirements by lenders for their firms to operate on a no-sale-no-fee basis. There a small number of lenders who operate a very restricted conveyancing panel managed by a third party company (often termed in the industry as a ‘gatekeeper’). That third party may impose certain conditions such as non-sale-no fee on the panel firms. If you require this as a condition of your conveyancing then you should check with the conveyancing firm that this is part of their service
I have today made my last payment due on mortgage with Bank of Scotland Private. I assume I don't need a solicitor on the Bank of Scotland Private panel to remove the mortgage at the Land Registry. Please confirm
If you have finished paying off your Bank of Scotland Private mortgage they may send you evidence showing that you have paid it off. Alternatively they may notify the Land Registry directly. The Land Registry need to see this evidence before they will remove the Bank of Scotland Private mortgage from the register. Bank of Scotland Private,and any evidence they send you, will determine the action you need to take. In cases where no conveyancer is acting for you and you have paid off your mortgage:
but are not moving to another property
where the Bank of Scotland Private has sent the Land Registry the discharge electronically, and
the Bank of Scotland Private has instructed the Land Registry to do so
The Land Registry will send you a letter confirming that your Bank of Scotland Private mortgage has been paid off.
It is not clear whether my mortgage offer requires a lease extension . I have called Bank of Scotland Private on various occasions and told it wasn't a problem and they would lend. My solicitor - who is on the Bank of Scotland Private conveyancing panel- telephoned and was told not they would not lend in accordance with their CML Handbook minimum lease term requirements. I simply dont know who is right
Your lawyer has to follow the CML Handbook Part 2 requirements for Bank of Scotland Private. Unless your lawyer obtains specific confirmation in writing that Bank of Scotland Private will go ahead your lawyer has no choice but to refrain from exchanging contract and committing you to the purchase. We would suggest that you ask Bank of Scotland Private to contact your lawyer in writing confirming that they will accept the remaining number of years left on the lease.