66 reviews (2/5) and information for Shoosmiths LLP, Northampton

28/09/21 - Reviewed by Lianda S

Delays delays delays. Don’t do anything for months and at the last hour come up with insanely stupid questions on a purchase that has no bearing or reflection on the property. At risk of losing purchase due to their inept behaviour and rude staff, and total lack of urgency. They still don’t complete in time even though they’ve had months to ask the questions. Not recommended to anyone. Am in discussion with the Law Society as this company needs to be audited and closed down for good. Go elsewhere…. Anywhere else is better. Utter disgrace.

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22/06/21 - Reviewed by Delyth

Totally inadequate. This ‘company’ has acted for the other party in our purchase. To say they have been incompetent is being polite. Nothing has been addressed early enough. We have been ready for months and they are still not in a position to exchange let alone complete. With the stamp duty holiday it was essential we exchanged this week. Save yourself the time, money, disappointment and heartache by using this shambles of a firm. One star is too much !

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06/05/21 - Reviewed by Norma

I am disgusted with shoosmiths , they do not get in contact when they should and when they do they are officious and bullying , one in particular when trying to contact is always on annual leave !!!!! How convenient .and time is of no consequence to them , delays upon delays !!!! But they enjoy threatening when they do finally get in touch !!!!!

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06/04/21 - Reviewed by Avoid at all costs

Shoosmiths was ‘recommended’ to us by the developer as they can ‘speed up the process’. This was my first property purchase and they made the entire process stressful and were incredibly condescending when queried anything. The implications of doubling ground was never highlighted and now I have an unsellable property. Avoid Shoosmiths at all costs, as it’s been an expensive and life changing mistake for me.

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14/03/21 - Reviewed by Anonymous

Do not use this company...failed to pay 2nd charge on property.....found out Two years later as loan company now chasing me for money. Reported to the solicitors regulation authority and the legal ombudsman

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06/02/21 - Reviewed by Dawn

If I could give them a score of -10 I would. An absolute joke of a firm. They are handling a probate and have caused massive unnecessary costs and delays. What they arranged with the deceased was immoral given the person was elderly and vulnerable. It has taken them over 2 and a half years to process a relatively straight forward estate so far and they still have not completed it. They never respond to queries in a reasonable time scale . It takes them weeks and weeks to respond to anything even a simple question and their response is usually that they are looking into it. They charge partner rates for admin fees. We will be looking to take them to court once this is finalised to be accountable for the charges they are incurring. It’s bordering on criminal how they operate. These sort of firms need to be held to account.

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24/11/20 - Reviewed by Anonymous

They are so rude. The minions that answer calls for the solicitors are the rudest girls I've spoken to and the solicitor tries to blame everyone for her mistakes. I know solicitors are a boring breed who deem themselves above you (even though I have achieved far more in my life than these people ever will), but a little bit of customer care and personality wouldn't go amiss. If you don't like what you do, change your career or suck it up and act with self respect.

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09/11/20 - Reviewed by Anonymous

Absolute sham of a company! leave you in the dark, have no interest in getting your sale through. Never phone only ever email. everything takes weeks longer than it needs to or should!
Avoid them like the plague.

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17/09/20 - Reviewed by Anonymous

Absolutely disgusted by the service I've received from this firm. They frequently miss deadlines, purposely ignore emails and calls. Plus have no attention to detail as despite being informed several times continue to send confidential information to the incorrect email addresses. Adam has been incredibly incompetent throughout the entire process. I am glad to be finished with them! I will NEVER be using their services again and will ensure that all of of legal matters are taken elsewhere, where both my business and money are valued.

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17/09/20 - Reviewed by Peter Pettifor

My Solicitors and I have been waiting for two months for Shoosmiths to send through the vendors pack so that I can get on with my house purchase. They do not respond to my solicitors enquires and have given no reason for the delay. I would advise you to use a different conveyancing firm if you don't want your purchase to be delayed

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18/08/20 - Reviewed by KIM

Liars who work for scamming loan sharks. Do not trust them, although their client is a loan shark they pretend they are working in your interests to help you! However in reality they give you false information and then say erm we don't work for you we are blood suckers who work for scum of the earth loan sharks who do not care about your circumstances. We have given you false information for over 1 year oops. Avoid at all costs and do not trust them! Not willing to help in any way and work with companies that are taking advantage of vulnerable people and are not following government guidelines. Truly shocking, especially the Edinburgh branch.

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28/07/20 - Reviewed by Anonymous

They clearly do not know how to communicate with the parties involved in each case, or how to look after forms. I have sent 5 copies of the SAME form because each time “it was not filled out correctly”, despite me having scans of the forms and them being filled out identically following THEIR guidelines. Their incompetence has pushed my move in date by an entire month simply because they lose paperwork and take hours to reply to simple emails. I understand that because of coronavirus it was going to be a longer process than usual but their service is simply unacceptable. Not to mention, the 2 solicitors working on my case seem to not know the other exists, as I was constantly asked to repeat forms and repeat confirmations. Also incredibly unhelpful when I called as I was confused because of something I had read in a form and the person I was talking to simply repeated what I had said in a condescending tone without explaining, like I was meant to understand every single thing. It seems to me like they pick up random people of the street, hire them so they have employees, and call it a day. DO NOT WASTE YOUR TIME AND MONEY WITH THESE PEOPLE!!!

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03/06/20 - Reviewed by Phillip Jackson

they do not answer the phone why because the person running your case is not a solicitor ..its a kid out of college a paralegal not qualified just idiots .. seven years they have stretched my case out their client natwest will not release crucial paperwork ...they are mickey mouse they are criminal who cannot be contacted do not use this company.. SHOULD BE FORCED TO SHUT ITS ABUSING OUR JUSTICE SYSTEM FOR ITS MASTER NATWEST BANK

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09/03/20 - Reviewed by Anonymous

The firm have very poor communications and have to date totally failed to acknowledge or respond to my complaints regarding this.
I would not recommend Shoosmiths LLP

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03/01/20 - Reviewed by Anonymous

If I could give no stars I would. Please do not get steered toward this dreadful firm by any estate agent or property company. They have been the most unhelpful, slow and uncooperative legal firm that we have had the misfortune to come into contact with.
If one person in your chain is using this company good luck, you will need it. Find someone local that you can deal with efficiently, face to face and you may even save money too.

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11/10/19 - Reviewed by Anonymous

Very poor administartaion and communication. Avoid at all costs.

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20/06/19 - Reviewed by Anonymous

Absolutely disgraceful service.

AVOID AT ALL COSTS

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21/05/19 - Reviewed by Mr G

I have been investing in property for the last 15 years and have not dealt with a more unprofessional company to date. They refuse to operate in a professional manner. Response times are weeks to simple enquiries and no matter how many times you chase them they simply ignore the need to improve.

Please please avoid! I deal with conveyancing solicitors on a daily basis and these are by far the worst.

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20/05/19 - Reviewed by Anonymous

Appalling lack of communication - no reply to messages, unwilling to discuss directly with me, went ahead on matters without my agreement, caused unnecessary problems. Avoid at all cost.

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26/03/19 - Reviewed by amanda

ooking at the quote for transferring my deceased fathers property from his name to mine - sound simple !?shoosmiths of Northampton wanted to charge me £2125.00 for a basic process - I’m sorry to tell you that their process was long winded and inaccurate.

I spoke to two solicitors and they are just over £1500 more expensive than the actual process should be - I was advised that my brothers and I only need to do some simple transactions, using an ID1 form which is verified by a solicitor this is then used to transfer the house from my deceased father's name to mine.
I was told by Janeen at shoosmiths that shoosmiths could not ADVISE me to complete the transfer to my name using this simple and inexpensive process - but 2 other local solicitors did! Apparently shoosmiths being a distance from me could not see me to verify this process as you need to see them face to face and I live two hours away - so they gave me an extremely expensive alternative to keep the business and basically rip me off. The likelihood “technically” (which is a word Janeen used to try to wriggle out of being told how furious I was with her ) yes so “ technically I MIGHT have a come back if my brothers change their mind about the figure we agreed I’d pay them in some future date - I had explicitly told her this was not going to happen the day before - but she still did not advise me of the very quick - cheap ID1 form process instead wanted to take me on a long expensive journey so they did not loose my business - any come back on using the ID1 form is my choice and I know there will be no come back, which I explained in full to Janeen yesterday. But no advice was forthcoming about this cheap process from Janeen even though I expressed grave misgivings at being ripped off and looking for the cheapest option -
Shoosmiths wont be reaching their targets for this month with my money sorry!

Best Regards

Amanda

PS I only gave 1 star because you have to give a star zero is not an option

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19/12/18 - Reviewed by S shah and c Makwana

Omg what a let down never experienced such rude staff and lack of communications, always ended up ringing them up as to how we are advancing in our conveyances. Would not recommend to anyone, rude staff specially danielle, Sarah and hardly got round to speak to Simon no clarifications at all despite the charges we paid . What a let down

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28/11/18 - Reviewed by Carlene Norman

Poor service.... AVOID!

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24/11/18 - Reviewed by Anonymous

Took them on to do the conveyancing of a property I'm buying under advice of the estate agent. What an absolute shambles.

Their communication is abysmal. I've sent lots of emails and some get answered (after about 3 days) and some get ignored.

I left two phone call messages yesterday (the day we were meant to exchange) and received nothing back.

If we weren't so far down the line now I'd tell them to get lost.

I would not recommend these people at all. If you get Habiba as your case handler, then take note of the points above.

If I could leave zero stars, I would but it won't let me.

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11/10/18 - Reviewed by J

If there was an option of no stars we would give it. We received a complete lack of communication from their end, and on the occasion that communication was instigated from our end, thoroughly incorrect information was given. Based on our one time experience, we would NOT recommend this company.

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02/09/18 - Reviewed by Anonymous

Contracts received for house purchase littered with crucial errors, a nearly doubled final bill from original quote and absolutely appalling communication / customer service. Avoid at all costs!

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31/07/18 - Reviewed by Anonymous

Sadly, one of the most stressful companies I've ever had the misfortune of working with.

I had to chase, daily, for progress updates. I had paperwork sent to me to sign that was incorrect or incomplete, I waited 2 weeks for them to get a response from the Mortgage company, only to find that the matter they were waiting for was not a problem at all, and when I chased, I got a response the same day from the mortgage company. I've documented all the mis-tellings from the ordeal, but it's too much to list on here. I'll be writing a formal complaint to Shoosmiths, not that it'll do any good.

What should have been a simple first time purchase with no chain turned in to a near 12 week saga of stress and worry, for absolutely no reason whatsoever.

Personally, I would avoid Shoosmiths at all costs, unless you want to be on the phone several times a day chasing them for updates / pushing them to actually do the work you've paid them for.

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27/07/18 - Reviewed by Ryan

A total shmables of a company. They could not have worse customer care and communication if they tried. The day after exchange they call me demanding another £6000 as they had got the maths wrong when calculating my deposit and tried blaming the lender and my broker, both of whom had been excellent throughout. This is the level of competence (or lack of) you will get when dealing with these people. Utterly appalling on every level, not to mention rude and hard to contact.

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24/07/18 - Reviewed by mark

Total con artist, the info they had was wrong from screwfix , CCJ sent out, in the wrong address for £4500 and now i cant get it removed without going back to court, this has been a year of hell, so slow, non compliant, dont go near them.... they don't have a clue what they are doing, I cant belive they are still running !

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03/07/18 - Reviewed by Anonymous

My experience mirrors the majority on here - don't waste your time with this lot. Utterly useless, no urgency whatsoever. Very little happens without pushing them.

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03/07/18 - Reviewed by Anonymous

Super super slow as my vendors solicitor

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16/06/18 - Reviewed by Simon D

quite a few mistakes this company are making
they have sent us a court summons for a debt they claim we owe with some
dodgy back street company Arrow Global
trying to get any information on this debt is impossible
they want money.we tried speaking with them on the phone after finding out there
client have put a very bad mark on our credit file and they said pay up or
will move forward and get a CCJ done.
this Solicitor are breaking so many laws and rules
we cannot believe they are able to do this without evidence
we have been told to fight them in court,what a load of hassle
they will pay for what they have done and arrow global
watchdog - cowboys we have been told

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14/06/18 - Reviewed by Peter

we have been trying to resolve an issue when they sent a court order for an amount
we knew nothing about regarding a company called arrow global
they have sent us nothing except continuous harassment to pay a debt without any information
the service is so bad and what they are doing is illegal which also breaches the FCA guidelines
and they are getting away with it
we have tried talking and emailing to no avail
this is a company we would not recommend to anyone

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13/06/18 - Reviewed by steve

This is a law firm that do not follow procedures and work for arrow global
who are a debt company
they send court summons with no proof of any debt
you ask for information and they send you nothing
stay away from this company

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10/04/18 - Reviewed by Anonymous

They are terrible. It’s been 6 months since we started to work with them and nothing has been done yet! No communication whatsoever. It takes 1 month to reply to our emails. Please choose a better company as you will be disappointed!

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04/12/17 - Reviewed by Anonymous

Given them one star as it won't let me post my comment without them being rated.
Appalling service, very rude when asked questions about the progress of the conveyancing. I am surprised they employ case handler who are not even qualified solicitor. When I asked whether they have received documents and forwarded them to the buyers solicitor, the case handler snapped at me that I am pestering her. Did she forget that I am paying them to provide the conveyancing service? Wouldn't give a completion date despite it been agreed by all the parties involved (both solicitors and buyer and seller). Wouldn't recommend them to anyone. If you want peace of mind employ the services of a local solicitor whom you can meet face to face or talk personally to on the phone. The whole service is a gimmick.

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22/11/17 - Reviewed by Anonymous

Shocking phoned claiming to be from court I don't think the thought I would Google number.

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14/11/17 - Reviewed by Anonymous

Agree with a lot of what other users have said. Very slow service, do the bare minimum, constant mistakes, poor communication and have to be constantly chased for anything to be done. With their appalling service, it took 3 days to finally exchange when it should've taken no time at all, as everything was in place. Will never use again.

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03/10/17 - Reviewed by Rebecca

Awful, awful awful. If I could give minus 100 I would. Slow, defensive, unresponsive, blaming everyone but themselves for issues, making big issues out of things that had already been resolved. I nearly lost my buyer because of their incompetence. Avoid Shoosmiths at all costs. They are DREADFUL.

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21/09/17 - Reviewed by Anonymous

Really disappointed. The staff are defensive and incredibly slow. I am also making a complaint. My advice, find someone local and responsive.

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15/09/17 - Reviewed by Jane

Avoid this firm if you can. The property team is a large bunch of useless, unqualified minions "managed" by solicitors who clearly do not have time to keep an eye on what they are doing, or not, as the case may be!
They are slow and almost lost me my buyer. I am making an official complaint.

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10/08/17 - Reviewed by Anonymous

Absolutely SHOCKING service, been waiting for months, same issues as other reviews and every time we call there is another issue that has to be resolved that takes FOREVER. Would defo NOT RECOMMEND TO ANYONE! Disgraceful people

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01/08/17 - Reviewed by Anonymous

Don't seem to understand basic documentation regarding the purchase and selling of a house. Delaying the whole process needlessly.

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28/06/17 - Reviewed by Anonymous

Useless scumbags

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26/05/17 - Reviewed by Anonymous

Slow and unresponsive. When they do answer the phone (which is rarely) they don't seem to have a clue what is going on. Nothing gets done unless you are pushing.

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26/04/17 - Reviewed by Anonymous

They are incredibly slow, inexperienced and do not work in the best interest of their clients. They overcharge and employ poor poor solicitors! Extremely unprofessional they swan off away and leave no notification, the bare minimum is done for you; do not use please avoid at all costs. There is something genuinely sinister and dishonest about their practice and I am in the process of escalating my complaint , estate agents recommended them to me worst decision of my life ; a lot of colooding via estate agent and solicitor that is not kosher! Do not trust , so disappointing and it goes to show no one does their job honestly and professionally anymore!

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14/02/17 - Reviewed by Anonymous

Absolutely shocking. No urgency what so ever. Case handler went on holiday without advising me and didnt leave the file with anyone so had to wait until she returned. Even then still no urgency. Didnt seem to care remotely about my case. would never use again and wouldnt recommend to anyone.

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19/12/16 - Reviewed by Anonymous

I wouldn't recommend this company they are shocking they are so slow. Waste your time constantly you have to call them about 5x a day to get an update every time you speak to them they tell u a different story. They blame everyone else even though it's their fault. They have ruined our Christmas we have a 5month old baby and they have really messed us around. Don't go with this company. I have only given them 1star because it won't let me give them none.

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13/11/16 - Reviewed by Kit

I have instructed Miss Wanda Wong behalf of me regarded the children case and finance case on 2014 till 2016 . It was nightmare!!! The service were an appalling and very unlawfully .. dishonestly advised , lack of experience. Everything gone wrong. The worst things were , she wasn't working on Finance case ... And took the case mess things around.
Also the firm Zelin & Zelin her parnet Mr C Tong... Very dishonest, not work on divorce area and took the divorce case over cost the client... Specially take advantage on Chinese community because some Chinese client lack of education.
If you use Zelin & Zelin please aware of the conduct with them and must request the cost beforehand otherwise ... They will over cost for a letter £2000!!! Can't trust them

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12/11/16 - Reviewed by Anonymous

Ongoing just be warned they are very very slow as below nothing gets without prompting the only thing they are quick on is charging you.......a lot !

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10/10/16 - Reviewed by Anonymous

Terrible. I had to change solicitors after 6 weeks of nothing being done despite phone calls and emails to chase them. Avoid.

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16/04/14 - Reviewed by Anonymous

Slow. Really slow. Nothing gets done without prompting.

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