The Conveyancing Association (CA) has updated its conveyancing member pledges, following the publication of its digital conveyancing protocol document and the Financial Conduct Authority’s Consumer Duty rules.

As part of being CA members, firms commit to upholding the pledges which focus on ensuring all clients, whether institutions or individuals, are treated fairly and the culture of fairness extends to all dealings with third parties.

Originally, the pledges covered quality of service, client satisfaction, efficient processes, title and registration, combating fraud, and providing mutual support and working towards a trusted community of conveyancers.

However, amendments have been made to the quality of service, which now focuses on reviewing a selling client’s title and highlighting issues which impact the sale, as well as identifying a buying client’s intended use and enjoyment of the property and highlighting legal issues which may impact this.

Changes have also been made to the title and registration pledge, requesting that HM Land Registry expedite registration of the title where hardship would be caused for a delay.

Following recent digital progress through the future digital conveyancing protocol launch and the technical protocol update, two specific CA pledges have been added.

The net-zero pledge will see members take proactive steps to encourage clients to identify how they can improve their property’s environmental impact in line with Government targets.

The digital data storage pledge will also see members take steps to enable property data to be delivered and stored digitally to enable future digital interaction with the property throughout its life cycle.

The CA said that firms should endeavour to provide their clients with a link to a digital storage area or digital property logbook to enable them to interact with their property details digitally when considering alterations, refinancing, retrofitting or sale.

Director of delivery at the CA, Beth Rudolf, said: "Our CA pledges are all about how member firms can engender a culture of fairness around the work they themselves carry out, and how they can prove this not just to clients but all stakeholders within the process. This most recent iteration of our Pledges includes the addition of two new ones, focused on how firms can take pro-active steps towards meeting net-zero targets, and how they deliver and store digital property data so it is able to be accessed by all those who interact with the property both now and in the future.

"The new and updated pledges follow the publication of our digital conveyancing protocol document and our updated technical protocol, in terms of the CA providing member firms with a range of information and recommendations on how they can secure the best experience for all those they deal with, and how they specifically tap into the benefits that can be secured by using digital solutions.

"This is all about delivering an improved home buying and selling process, and how we make that process less stressful and much more timely, which will provide huge benefits for all."

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