Bpl Solicitors Limited

Matter Type: Residential Conveyancing

We used BPL to buy our first property and it wasn't until we sold it that we realised they breached ethical and professional standards and definitely did not work in our best interest. We had to pay out a huge sum of money for a deed of variation which our now solicitors were shocked that this wasn't dealt with when we bought it. I raised a complaint on the 11th August and after reading their policy on being responded to within 35 working days I am disgusted that this has not been resolved after 60 days and counting and nobody has responded to my 4th email!

We used BPL in 2018 for the sale of a flat and purchase of a new property. Our appointment of BPL was a huge mistake.

We were assigned to their Bristol team. Issues with BPL included:

* Our property purchase took many weeks longer than it should have due to BPL's incompetence. On several occasions it took the seller threatening to pull out of the sale for BPL to complete the most straightforward tasks.

* Two months into the conveyance process (two months after we had completed various forms and payments), BPL told the sellers' solicitor that the reason for their slow progress was that we had not appointed them (!?!?!). Completely unacceptable.

* At least 95% of the time they failed to answer the phone.

* On the rare occasions that they did answer the phone, the attitude of BPL staff was they could not be f***ed. Only once was I able to speak to the actual solicitor who was handling our case (at completion), all other times she was apparently away.

* Throughout the process BPL were trying to sell us "extras" - this is obviously where they make a decent amount of profit. E.g. chancel insurance was quoted as £130 through BPL, I found a higher level of cover for £15 elsewhere (due to having to pay a broker and BPL to "review" we barely saved any money but by that point we were happy to reduce our payment to BPL).

* In the days before our completion they "lost" £10,000 which we sent over to them. Our bank sent us confirmation of the money being transferred to BPL's bank, the error was with BPL.

* BPL repeatedly lost copies of documents that we sent over to them, asking for yet another copy to be re-sent.

* The BPL completion statement was incorrect on four occasions. Even when I pointed out the errors it took several revisions to be addressed.

Buying and selling your home is likely to be a stressful process even if most aspects go relatively smoothly. Do not add to the stress by employing a team as incompetent as BPL.

Our buyer used this solicitor and they were absolutely awful! They delayed our sale by 3 weeks! Our solicitor struggled to communicate with them and they were so uncooperative! Stay away from them at all costs!

Matter Type: Purchase and Sale

We went with BPL after reading some reviews and on the recommendation of our mortgage broker. To be frank, we were not impressed. If you are a first time buyer or want your case handled with a distinguished touch of professionalism, this is likely not the conveyancing firm for you. In the beginning (I.e. getting our file set up), BPL moves at rapid speed and I figured that this was a sign of good things to come. Unfortunately, it was not. No-one ever answers the phone. My conveyancer needed constant chasing by three parties (myself included) as the searches, enquiries, conveyancing pack were all sought but sat on thereafter with menial excuses that she had not received paperwork from us and therefore could not progress the case (despite all paperwork being sent for via first class signed delivery and having been signed for). Ironically, when presented with the times and dates of delivery confirmation, she somehow found the documents. Everything seemed like an exercise reserved for buying time. The service was completely impersonal and our conveyancer was pretty rude when she was chased by the estate agent (rude response and putting the phone down) which again bears indication on the level of professionalism. Our concerns about the contract were answered dismissively with vague non-advisory responses that neither gave us any reassurance or the advice that we believed we were paying for. Rather than provide the information we were seeking, the conveyancer portrayed us in a bad light to the other side’s solicitor advising that we were the cause of delay. To add insult to injury, our main source of update came from the other side’s solicitor via the estate agent. Lastly, a mistake was made on our completion bill meaning that we were contacted by BPL for more money shortly after moving in with no real explanation. The last thing you want is unexpected cost when you’ve just bought and moved in and yet BPL had no qualms about requesting this payment (which was not on the original invoice) without so much as an explanation. Is it too much to ask that you tell me how/why you’ve charged me incorrectly? Apparently so. 1 star rated as there is no option for 0 stars.

Matter Type: Purchase and Sale

Absolutely useless so far. No stars would be more appropriate. They are not my solicitors but my seller's. They so far have been taking forever to respond to my solicitor's correspondence. But this is not the main problem. They have done an absolutely poor job checking the seller's information. For example, even though the seller informed them that the house was recently inherited and gave them a copy of the probate with the names of two executors, they only included one of the executors in the contract and did not inform my solicitor about the probate. That would not be a major issue if it didn't take them an average of 3-4 weeks between each letter. For example when they were queried about the difference in the names between the titles and the contract they took 15 days to respond. So first they make mistakes in checking the documents they receive and compiling their reports, then when these mistakes are being pointed out to them, it takes them ages to even tell their client about it. Oh and they never respond to the messages of the seller (I have direct contact with the seller thank God). Avoid avoid avoid.

Thank you Andrew and his team for some perfect peace of mind conveyancing and looking after two first time buyers!

Matter Type: Purchase and Sale

I was changing my property from Leasehold to Freehold and the service I received from BPL was excellent - I was kept updated at all times. I would totally recommend BPL to anyone. Thank you again and in particular to Donna.

Matter Type: Purchase and Sale

The service I received from BPL solicitors was not what I had expected when choosing them to act on my behalf in the sale of my property. The whole process took 19 weeks to complete which was unacceptable. What was more frustrating was the lack of communication from my solicitor’s team to keep me updated which was non-existent at many times. On many occasions I had to chase for an update, especially towards the end where I had to raise a formal complaint to one of the directors which I believe helped in pushing my sale through. The staff, when replying to emails a few times, would confuse me as the buyer (when I am the seller!) which was frustrating and lacked professionalism in proof reading communications sent. This was further highlighted when in the 14th week I was sent another clients TR1 form to complete, which had all the client’s details (property they were selling, amount for, names and address (of both buyer and seller)), which had nothing to do with the sale of my property. I had to raise this as an issue as I became worried about my own personal data they have may be shared with parties that should not have access to. Overall poor experience and would not use again.

Matter Type: Purchase and Sale

Worst Service.. Very good until you sign up once you have paid the money keep chasing for everything... Very slow to respond to everything. If you have loads of time and prefer to spend time chasing the things then they will suit you.

Matter Type: Purchase and Sale

From previous experience with other solicitors I've used in the past, I was very impressed with service provided. Very smooth transition, staff always responded to any enquiries quickly and in a professional manner. Kept updated throughout the process. Documentation required was easy to complete and submitted on by the online service. Would highly recommend