Non-motoring > Question for Bromp ? Legal Questions
Thread Author: legacylad Replies: 14

 Question for Bromp ? - legacylad
I’m lending some money to an acquaintance to buy some land for the purpose of building on. All permissions have been granted, plans accepted and I’ve done due diligence.

The solicitor handling the purchase wants to see evidence of available funds in my account, which is fair enough, but has also asked for a copy of my passport and a utility bill in my name.

Is this normal ? I can’t recall supplying passport details previously to a solicitor when I’ve bought a house.
Maybe it’s me feeling shirty.
 Question for Bromp ? - Lygonos
Not Bromp but this is almost certainly a legal requirement in the anti-money laundering rules.
 Question for Bromp ? - legacylad
That’s what I thought...but when I bought the new Porsche 4 years ago and paid by bank transfer after receiving a large inheritance, the dealer didn’t ask for my passport details.

Maybe the money laundering regs have increased, which is no bad thing.
 Question for Bromp ? - Crankcase
Just in the process of selling my mother's house, using my POA. I've used an accountant, an estate agent and two solicitors and all have asked for my passport. All have been told I don't have one, and were fine with two other bits of ID instead.

One said it was part of the legal "on-boarding" process. Isn't English great?

 Question for Bromp ? - Zero
>> That’s what I thought...but when I bought the new Porsche 4 years ago and paid
>> by bank transfer after receiving a large inheritance, the dealer didn’t ask for my passport
>> details

Because the bank account it came from is constantly being scanned for possible money laundering and has a green flag.
 Question for Bromp ? - sooty123
Is this normal ? I can’t recall supplying passport details previously to a solicitor when
>> I’ve bought a house.
>> Maybe it’s me feeling shirty.
>>
Yes it's normal now, at several points we had to produce ID when we bought a house recently.
 Question for Bromp ? - legacylad

>> Yes it's normal now, at several points we had to produce ID when we bought
>> a house recently.
>>
That’s fair enough...I’ll send ID of a utility bill, screen shot of my current bank account balance, and photo ID as per my old folks bus pass.

I’ll see if the solicitor responds about non compliance of providing passport details.
 Question for Bromp ? - Bromptonaut
Absolutely normal. I had to jump through exactly the same hoops when providing bridging finance to my daughter.

Solicitors are 'under the cosh' about financial compliance closing down opportunities for money laundering. The Law Society Gazette is regularly reporting solicitors being fined or in most egregious cases struck off for failures in this area. I don't remember being asked this stuff 20 years ago when we bought this place. I knew the solicitor professionally as we regularly instructed him for dealings with the affairs Court of Protection 'patients'. That was good enough back then.

Heard anecdotal evidence of older people, typically widows who never travelled abroad or drove, struggling to get advice as they can't jump the hoops.
Last edited by: Bromptonaut on Sun 29 Aug 21 at 09:25
 Question for Bromp ? - bathtub tom
>>Solicitors are 'under the cosh' about financial compliance closing down opportunities for >>money laundering. The Law Society Gazette is regularly reporting solicitors being fined or in >>most egregious cases struck off for failures in this area.

Then I wish they'd look closely at the one the vendor of the house I'm trying to buy was using, fortunately the vendor sacked the solicitor last week. The solicitor's already been fined £15K (with a further £15K costs) by a disciplinary tribunal. He's apparently done nothing for four months. My solicitors sent emails with read receipts that haven't been acknowledged, let alone replied to. It's alleged he doesn't read emails, but his secretary prints them off for him to read. I've also heard his working hours are 10:00 - 12:00 and 14:00 - 16:00. I can't make an official complaint about him, it would seem only the vendor, or another solicitor can.

www.solicitorstribunal.org.uk/sites/default/files-sdt/11981.2019.Stubbings.pdf
 Question for Bromp ? - Kevin
>My solicitors sent emails with read receipts that haven't been acknowledged, let alone replied to.

Delivery notification and Read receipts are ignored by 99% of email servers because they add unnecessary workload and traffic.
 Question for Bromp ? - smokie
Yes Kevin, good point - I recall dealing with the clean-up of a virus in a major insurance co some years back. The network was overwhelmed almost as much by the delivery confirmations, read receipts and out of office messages which the virus prompted than the actual viral load.
 Question for Bromp ? - zippy
>>
>> Heard anecdotal evidence of older people, typically widows who never travelled abroad or drove, struggling
>> to get advice as they can't jump the hoops.
>>

MIL certainly falls in to that category. No passport, no driving licence and no photo ID.

Miss Z is currently purchasing and is falling down on the utility bill as she is living in my spare room rent free.
 Question for Bromp ? - Clk Sec
>> That’s fair enough...I’ll send ID of a utility bill, screen shot of my current bank
>> account balance, and photo ID as per my old folks bus pass.
>>
>> I’ll see if the solicitor responds about non compliance of providing passport details.
>>

We were asked to provide original utility bill, bank details and passports in respect of our recent(ish) house move. Driving licences were deemed acceptable in lieu of passports, as ours were boxed up (and somewhat inaccessible) in our rental property.
 Question for Bromp ? - Duncan
>> That’s fair enough...I’ll send ID of a utility bill, screen shot of my current bank
>> account balance, and photo ID as per my old folks bus pass.
>>
>> I’ll see if the solicitor responds about non compliance of providing passport details.
>>

Why are you bothered about producing your passport?
 Question for Bromp ? - zippy
>>
>> Why are you bothered about producing your passport?
>>

To me it's another piece of information that we are required to provide / hoop that we have to jump through because of criminal activity by others.

I have filled in a number of suspicious activity reports including where I have noted clear fraud against the HMRC and nothing has happened.

And basically it's up to 5 years in clink if you should have spotted money laundering but failed to which is why car dealerships, kitchen showrooms, solicitors etc. now ask for proof of identity.


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