Help protect client money

Help protect client money

With cybercrime on the rise, it is more important than ever that conveyancing solicitors have the correct protection in place to prevent loss of client money.

Only last month Lawyer Checker reported that their Checker Account & Entity Screen check prevented criminals from stealing £375,000 from a property law firm based in the South-East of England.

This occurred when a hoax email pretending to be from a vendor solicitor firm was identified as corrupt when conveyancing specialists checked details using the Checker Account & Entity Screen search.

Lawyer Checker’s Account & Entity Screen search allowed the conveyancing firm to easily and efficiently check whether the bank details included in the requisitions sent by the ‘vendor’ were valid.

Fortunately, on this occasion, it was within the firm’s policy to carry out an Account & Entity Screen search with both Lawyer Checker and a check of their safe list. But the number of situations is increasing dramatically where firms risk losing thousands as a result of these scams.

Marie Turrell, Conveyancing Executive at Hayward Moon, said:

“All I could think of were the consequences on me and our firm if we had not used Lawyer Checker as a matter of course.”

Before releasing funds, what checks does your firm make? Lawyer Checker allows solicitors and conveyancers to check the previous use of client accounts to which they are sending funds. This search has been designed to protect client money, irrespective of them being the lender or borrower, and reduces uncertainty in identifying the legitimacy of the vendor conveyancer to enable you to assess the risk associated with the transaction.

Lisa Summerton, Sales Director, at Searches UK said:

“I would highly recommend conveyancing solicitors consider Lawyer Checker’s search to tackle the increasing risk of vendor conveyancer fraud.

“It is the responsibility of conveyancers to be diligent and well informed to protect your client’s funds and assets. That is why Searches UK provides this essential search, which can easily be added to your conveyancing search bundles.”

Searches UK can offer Lawyer Checker to all clients ordering searches, which will allow firms to gather information on the conveyancer to which they are sending money to and better assess the risk associated with the transaction.

All solicitors and conveyancers should reassess the checks they have in place before they send money to any organisations offering undertakings.

For more information about Searches UK Lawyer Checker or to view a sample of this search report, please click here.

For more information about any of the products and services from Searches UK visit their website and follow them on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn or Google+. Alternatively call them directly on 0800 043 1815 or email them at info@searchesuk.co.uk to speak to one of their dedicated team today.

This article was submitted to be published by Searches UK as part of their advertising agreement with Today’s Conveyancer. The views expressed in this article are those of the submitter and not those of Today’s Conveyancer.

Searches UK

https://www.searchesuk.co.uk

Searches UK is one of the country's leading Conveyancing Search providers.  Founded on the idea that you can combine first-class service with accurate and reliable conveyancing searches without having to compromise, it is our goal to ensure you get the results you need quickly and efficiently. We offer the full range of conveyancing searches, for both residential and conveyancing transactions, which can be ordered along with our Buyer Protect Scheme if required, ensuring that your clients benefit from our unique reimbursement scheme and are protected from some of the associated costs, should the transaction not complete.  We also offer a wide range of title insurance and indemnity policies and can provide fast turnaround times on EPCs, AML ID checks, Asbestos Surveys and Fire Risk Assessments too. All our searches are backed with fully comprehensive PI insurance, giving you complete confidence and peace of mind. We don't use call centres, so when you choose Searches UK, you get direct dial access to one of our skilled conveyancing search specialists, who will have the knowledge and expertise to ensure you get the most accurate results possible at the best value for money. At Searches UK we understand the difficulties you face in dealing with your risk and compliance obligations and we have ourselves been applauded by Legal Eye for having extremely robust systems in place.  In July 2012 we became the first search provider to have been awarded the Legal Eye Quality Standard. As well as being an appointed representative of First Title Insurance plc, which is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority under registration number 202103.


Contact: Searches UK Tel: 01273 776625 Email: info@searchesuk.co.uk Address Unit 2, Gemini Business Centre, 136-140 Old Shoreham Road, Hove, East Sussex, BN3 7BD    

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