Conveyancers slam Law Society over updated property forms

A new TA6 Property Information Form that supports National Trading Standards material information guidance has been released by The Law Society of England and Wales, but conveyancers are not happy about the changes.

It includes the information that the National Trading Estate and Letting Agency Team (NTSELAT) says should be disclosed by estate agents on property listings.

The Society of Licensed Conveyancers (SLC) has expressed its disappointment that the TA6 and TA7 forms have been updated by the Law Society without consultation.

The trade group says that, whilst licensed conveyancers are not obliged to use these forms, some do, and of course are presented with them by the counterparty conveyancer or insisted upon by CQS members.

Simon Law, the Society’s Chairperson says: ‘We are disappointed to note that the forms have been amended without consultation with either the SLC or the Conveyancing Task force.
The addition of material information to these forms has drastically increased the size of the forms and information required.

“It is further disappointing to note that this was not used as an opportunity to review the wording for the forms.”

The SLC has also pointed that material information is to disclose more property specific information during the marketing of a property to allow potential buyers to be better informed before making an offer.

The key words are “before they make an offer”. Putting those questions in the TA6 form rather flies in the face of ‘before offer’ information, unless Estate Agents are going to use these, or Conveyancers are instructed prior to marketing.

USED FOR MARKETING

NTSELAT guidance advises sellers to contact their solicitor at an early stage, and sellers may therefore ask for help to complete a TA6 form earlier in the process so that more information about the property can be used for marketing.

The Law Society President Nick Emmerson says: “Earlier contact between sellers and their solicitors may provide an opportunity to address any issues that could cause delays in the sale process at a later date.

“We hope that the TA6 will help facilitate the flow of information from marketing a property by estate agents through to the legal process.

“The aim is that having better informed buyers could help reduce both the time the process takes and the number of sales that fall through.”

UPDATES TO TA6

Property details: including the Unique Property Reference Number (UPRN) and council tax band of the property.

Tenure, ownership and charges: whether the property is freehold, leasehold, shared ownership, or commonhold; and details of the costs, such as ground rent and service charges.

Parking: including the cost of parking permits and whether the property has electric vehicle (EV) charging.

Building safety: providing details of any defects or hazards at the property and whether essential works have been recommended and carried out.

Restrictive covenants that affect the use of the property.

Flood risk and coastal erosion: to establish what the flood risk is for the area around the property, whether any defences have been installed, and if the property is near the coast, whether there is any known risk of coastal erosion.

Accessibility: the adaptations or features that have been made to provide easier access to and within the property.

Coalfield or mining area: identifying if the property is impacted by any past or present mining activity.

Solar panels: providing details about the installation that a buyer/lender will need to know.

Services connected: these now include air and ground heat pumps.

Drainage and sewerage: additional questions about where the sewerage system discharges to and whether it has an infiltration system.

Japanese knotweed: refinement of the question to incorporate the area adjacent to or abutting the property.

The TA6 Explanatory Notes for Sellers and Buyers and the TA7 Leasehold Information Form have also been updated.

The TA forms are available from Law Society licensed third-party suppliers.