Satchin Semage
Avoid like the plague. Unless you prefer last minute stress, zero attention and complete indifference, in which case you will love them.
We used Wards for the conveyancing on our new build, completing at the end of July 2026. We started the process in early February. We left them ample time and more. They still managed to disappoint us in ways I did not know existed. Do not be fooled by the "personal attention", "we prefer to meet in person", "local to you" line. They do not do in person meetings. We asked several times and there was always some reason why not. They are also never available. Getting hold of the solicitor is near impossible. If you are lucky you might get the assistant, and that is only if you are very lucky. They cannot do the maths. To be clear, this is not about their own fees. This is the money we owed the developer. Purchase price, minus the deposit they were already holding, minus the mortgage advance they were already holding. An x minus y. They got it wrong at exchange, asked us for a figure, and we sent it. Then, in completion week, they issued a completion statement, which is meant to be the final word on what you owe, and got it wrong again. Then at 12:25 on completion day itself, with keys and removals booked, they emailed an amended completion statement asking for another £999. Did not even call, just emailed and avoided our call-backs until we paid it. Every document they needed to get it right had been sitting in their file for weeks. Nothing changed that morning except that somebody finally checked. When we rang for an explanation, nobody answered. Direct line, switchboard, email, nothing, for hours. We got through in the end by ringing from our work phone, which produced a very awkward conversation and no answer. No accountability that anything had gone wrong either, obviously. We paid the £999 anyway, because the alternative was losing the completion. Worth noting that an unexplained, last-minute demand for funds is exactly what their own email footer tells clients to treat as fraud, and we could not get hold of them to validate the request. I escalated it the same day and asked for reasons. Over a month later, I have nothing. The only replies I have had are that it "has been referred". First to the Head of Department, then to the head of conveyancing. I chase once a week. They ignore me once a week. Consistent, at last. And when we actually needed a solicitor, there was not one. The developer had not delivered several things that were promised in writing in the reservation paperwork. I am their client, so I asked for advice on the options. Delay completion, a retention, an undertaking, anything. Two days of chasing to get hold of anybody, and what I got was "we'll fire an email off". That was the entire legal advice. I sorted it out with the developer myself. Overall, I can not be more disappointed with a service than this. The minimum courtesy is to acknowledge the mistake and take responsibility. If you want someone who picks up the phone in the week that actually matters, go elsewhere.
