The clock is ticking on new Price Transparency Regulations - Is your Firm ready?
The clock is ticking on new price transparency regulations. The SRA and CLC have now launched their respective consultations on how they intend to ask firms to publish their fees on their websites.
In this article we take a look at how QuoteXpress can help your firm to get ready for the new price transparency regulations coming into force next year.
The SRA intends for firms to publish transparent price information on a range of services including Residential Conveyancing (limited to sale, purchase and remortgage), Undefended Divorces, Wills, Probate, LPA, Motor Offences, Personal Injury and Employment Tribunals.
For legal services for businesses, the SRA also wishes to cover Employment Tribunals, Debt Recovery and Licensing applications in relation to business premises.
The CLC intends to ask the firms it regulates to publish price information on conveyancing and probate.
With respect to conveyancing, a draft template for generating conveyancing fees has been developed between the Council for Licensed Conveyancers, Chartered Institute of Legal Executives and the Solicitors Regulation Authority, and sets out the information that should be provided as part of a complete price estimate in the relevant services.
According to the SRA Consultation:
"Firms will need to determine what information they need to collect to arrive at a full and accurate estimate. We would expect estimates provided in this way to be reflected in the final bill for services, subject to new information emerging that affects price.
Each firm will need to make sure that it gathers from potential clients all the relevant information about their transaction that might affect the final cost. This may vary between firms."
For conveyancing, the information the SRA, CLC and CILEx expect to be captured in order to produce an accurate and transparent fee estimate is as follows:
| Required Information | Asked in QuoteXpress and automatically factored into the fees if required? |
|---|---|
| whether a first-time buyer | Yes |
| value of sale/purchase | Yes |
| whether a remortgage | Yes |
| whether freehold or leasehold | Yes |
| whether a new build | Yes |
| whether first registration of title | Yes |
| whether mortgage or not | Yes |
| whether an Islamic mortgage | Yes |
| in purchase cases, whether primary residence, buy to let or second/holiday home | Yes |
| whether multiple owners | Yes |
| whether a shared ownership scheme | Yes |
| whether using a help to buy scheme | Yes |
| whether purchase under right to buy | Yes |
| whether purchase at auction | Yes |
| whether property has been repossessed | Yes |
QuoteXpress automatically calculates any Stamp Duty payable along with the Land Registry fee. You can also add your own conditional fees and disbursements to ensure your prospective customers are getting the most accurate fee estimate possible. You can try our quote form out yourself here.
QuoteXpress can also help you meet the new regulatory requirements for other areas of law covered in the consultation.
For consumers
| Case Type | Available in QuoteXpress? |
|---|---|
| Residential conveyancing (limited to sale, purchase and remortgage) | Yes |
| Family – undefended divorce and financial disputes arising out of divorce | Yes (undefended divorce only) |
| Drafting of a will | Yes |
| Drafting a lasting Power of Attorney | Yes |
| Motoring offences | TBC |
| Employment tribunal | TBC |
| Personal injury claimant | TBC |
For small businesses
| Case Type | Available in QuoteXpress? |
|---|---|
| Employment tribunal | TBC |
| Debt recovery | TBC |
| Licensing applications in relation to business premises | TBC |
To find out more about how QuoteXpress can help your firm adapt to the new regulations, contact us today!