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Lenders have always had an approved set of law firms they are willing to work with, but in the past few years big names such as Nationwide , have reviewed and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have worked with them for more than 25 years.

Banks blame a rise in fraud by way of justification for the cull – criteria have been tightened and a smaller panel should be easier to keep an eye on. No lender will say how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society says it is being contacted daily by practices that have been removed from panels, or have other concerns about them. Some do not even realise they have been dropped until contacted by a borrower who has instructed them as might be the situation in your buyer’s case. Your purchasers are unlikely to have any sway in the decision.

On the face of it your lawyer has done nothing wrong as it is established procedure for any occupier who is aged 17 or over to sign the necessary Consent Form, which is purely to state that any rights he has in the property are postponed and secondary to Royal Bank of Scotland .This is solely used to protect the Royal Bank of Scotland if the property were re-possessed so that in such circumstances, your son would be legally obliged to leave.

It does not impact your son’s right to inherit the apartment. Please note that if your son were to inherit and the mortgage in favour of Royal Bank of Scotland had not been discharged, he would be liable to take over the loan or pay it off, but other than that, there is nothing stopping him from keeping the property in accordance with your will or the rules of intestacy.

We are not in the business of recommending one firm above another as the right firm for you depends on where your priorities lie. For example you may require a local firm with local knowledge or you might be looking for the low cost conveyancing. We recommend that you speak to 3 or 4 lawyers listed before you make your choice..

Assuming that you have an Estate Agent in the equation then let them know straight away so that they advise the vendors that there may be a slight delay due to the problems encountered. Hopefully they will be sympathetic and urge their lawyer to send a new set of papers to your new solicitors. You should appoint new lawyers that are on the Royal Bank of Scotland conveyancing panel and notify the lender. If you have paid over any money it will hopefully be held by the SRA as money in an intervened firm's bank accounts is transferred to the SRA. Then, the SRA or the intervention agent looks at the intervened firm's accounts to work out who the money belongs to. To claim your money you will need to contact the SRA. If the SRA cannot return money you are owed from the firm's bank accounts, or if they can only return part of the money, you can apply to the Compensation Fund for a grant. Your new solicitors may be able to assist

Lenders such as Royal Bank of Scotland can revoke their mortgage offer although this is unusual. If Royal Bank of Scotland withdraw their offer they may or may not inform you or the lawyer as to their reasoning. There are many potential reasons but here are 5 examples:

• If the borrower informs Royal Bank of Scotland of a change in security address

• Amendments if purchase price adjusted and the loan to value limits exceeded by this. Please note that Royal Bank of Scotland conveyancing panel solicitors would be obliged to notify Royal Bank of Scotland of a change in the price of the property.

• Following advice from the valuer on their lender panel or If the lender has doubts about the effectiveness of the valuation as a result of subsequent events or information received post valuation but pre completion

• Where the lender has to take account a recent change in taxation

• Where the sale is not at arms length for value to unconnected persons

Most lenders have complaints procedures. Your first point of contact should be one of the Royal Bank of Scotland branches or the Customer Services Department at Royal Bank of Scotland head office. In most cases complaints to Royal Bank of Scotland are resolved very quickly. If you feel that the matter is not resolved you can write to the Financial Ombudsman Service at South Quay Plaza, 183 Marsh Wall, London E14 9SR with full details of your complaint.

Not all Hendon conveyancing practices are on the Royal Bank of Scotland conveyancing panel. 5 people a month use our search tool to locate a Hendon conveyancing firm on the on the Royal Bank of Scotland list of approved conveyancing firms.