Solicitors not passing funds to HMRC

BongoHunter

BongoHunter

BongoHunter

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East Sussex
Evening

We purchased a house back in August, and as part of the completion transferred £25K to our solicitors so they could pay the SDLT on the purchase.

All was well we assumed but then had a letter come though from HMRC in early October saying they hadn't received the stamp duty payment.

I've chased the solicitors every 2 weeks since that time and though they replied to my first enquiry ensuring me they would pay it immediately, nothing has happened and they no longer reply to my emails. I can't get though on the phone (I get stuck with the receptionist who I leave messages with for my solicitor).

I'm not sure what to do next - as far as HMRC are concerned I owe them the 25K. Paying HMRC another 25K (plus interest) isn't right.

Feels like my solicitor has potentially stolen the 25K - but I suppose there's a decent chance they are completely incompetent instead. I'm sure the police wouldn't be interested in this, HMRC don't care. Also unsure if I should contact the SRA or Legal ombudsman at this stage - or give it more time.

Has anyone here been though something similar? What did you do?

Many thanks
 
Whenever I've had anything to do with solicitors and house moves they've been an absolute utter inept shambles - I'd go hard on them. Our last house move the girl from the estate agent actually marched into the solicitors and gave them what for, I mean literally tearing into them, to get them to get their arses in gear.
 
I would register a complaint with the Law Society about your solicitor now and let HMRC know. How these ”professionals” can screw up without recourse when you or I would probably be facing a disciplinary in our jobs for such ineptitude is beyond me. Certainly register whatever complaint officially as soon as you can. You should not pay twice!
 
Ring ring

"XYZ Solicitors, how can I help you?"

"Hi, this is @BongoHunter. Can you please advise Mrs Bloggs that I have in my hand a letter of complaint to the Law Society detailing your non-payment of the SDLT to HMRC on my house purchase. In one hour I will ring HMRC to confirm that payment has been made. If payment has not been paid then I will post the letter. I may also contact the police. That clock starts now." <click>
 
www.lawsociety.org.uk

Complain about a solicitor

www.lawsociety.org.uk www.lawsociety.org.uk

Law Society.

I used to run a few Law Society audits on solicitors. The process is very tight because even small-time solicitors will have enormous amounts of client money sloshing around in their client bank account. And a lot of them are totally ******* incompetent at managing it (probably a proportion are total crooks who need to be kept in line, too).

There's not much profit in conveyancing, so only useless staff are on the job (often not qualified solicitors). As you're discovering.
 
cheesyboy said:
There's not much profit in conveyancing, so only useless staff are on the job (often not qualified solicitors). As you're discovering.
Click to expand...

Sadly seems to be the case - absolutely does my head in when they insist on information being submitted in a specially collated format "so they can refer to it quickly and accurately" then when something doesn't happen and you get on their case eventually come back with "we are waiting on X information, please can you submit it" which is there all along in the carefully collated material submitted to them.
 
We've just had a very similar issue. My wife bought her last house Via the Scottish governments help to buy scheme. When she sold it the funds were used to pay off the balance of the mortgage and repay the government loan. Or so we thought. The solicitor didn't pay £30,000 back to the government and has since been struck off.

We only discovered this today when the new owner got in touch advising us that he wasn't able to get the properties title deads and discovered it's under threat of repossession.

In the eyes of the government my wife is liable for this money. She's never seen a penny of it. It's been reported to the police as fraud and we're hopeful the solicitors insurance will cover it as apparently it's still valid.

Absolute nightmare, they charge a fortune and for what?
 
Jesus Christ. That's utterly terrible.
There's a mystique of trust and respect around these guys for me but why I still have it I do not know.
 
cheesyboy said:
www.lawsociety.org.uk

Complain about a solicitor

www.lawsociety.org.uk www.lawsociety.org.uk

Law Society.

I used to run a few Law Society audits on solicitors. The process is very tight because even small-time solicitors will have enormous amounts of client money sloshing around in their client bank account. And a lot of them are totally ******* incompetent at managing it (probably a proportion are total crooks who need to be kept in line, too).

There's not much profit in conveyancing, so only useless staff are on the job (often not qualified solicitors). As you're discovering.
Click to expand...
One of my friends is a conveyancing solicitor, IIRC the lackadaisical attitude of the other seniors at his original firm is why he left them for a junior position at a better run one (and spent months on gardening leave between the two).
I think part of it was he could see the potential for something very seriously wrong to happen just because someone wasn't paying attention, and he didn't want to be anywhere near them when it happens.
 
The communication sounds very poor. It’s not beyond the realms the possibility that it’s actually been paid and resolved. Have you tried calling HMRC to check?

If it’s not been resolved, if you still haven’t done so, raise a formal complaint with the firm (make sure they know you wish to make a formal complaint).

They will cover the fine.
 
cheesyboy said:
There's not much profit in conveyancing, so only useless staff are on the job (often not qualified solicitors). As you're discovering.
Click to expand...

Yes to most of this, but the part in brackets is unfair. You don’t need to be a solicitor to be a conveyancer, nor is being a solicitor a sign of competence in that practice.
 
Go and see them in person as a first step. I would be explaining that a formal complaint will be made very quickly afterwards if they don't get their act together.
 
I think I would visit in person and tell the solicitor that as they appear incapable, unwilling or unable to pay HMRC you want your money transferred back to you whilst you wait and you'll send it HMRC yourself.
 
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