Exclusive: Legal price comparison site set to break new ground
Law firms have been invited to register for free on what is claimed to be the first legal services price comparison website to give consumers instant details of costs.
Nick Miller, who has practised in the Hull area as a high street practitioner for 22 years, is launching wigster.com with funding from a private equity investor. Free registration is available now and firms who obtain work through the site will be charged a referral fee. The wigster.com brand will be promoted later in the year with what Miller describes as ‘high-profile’ TV, radio and press campaigns.
He said: ‘The site will give costs instantly, rather than “upon application”, which is what other sites do. The aim is to develop an approachable brand for consumers who otherwise find lawyers and their fees daunting.’
Miller expects law firms offering conveyancing, employment, debt, personal injury, wills & probate, road traffic accident, business and other consumer-focused advice to sign up. Thirty have registered in the first 10 days of marketing and a further 100 have expressed interest, Miller said.
Comments
Which fool?
Which fool 'private equity investor' put money behind this punt. I'd be very surprised if we hear of this one again, just like bidforfees last week and the two dozen others that have popped up inthe past 5 years and then disappeared. Odd that they all promised to be the website of the future, often with huge advertising funds but none appear to actaully get anywhere or do any TV advertising. Or is that because I don't watch day-time telly?
Wigster
I am a lawyer and was one of a number asked to look at the site recently to give feedback before launch. I was cynical at first and firmly in "anon's" camp. Unfortunately (I hate being wrong) I thought the site was great primarily because it offers a pricing system that consumers will like and an instant comparison. Although I'm no expert in this area I am yet to find another legal comparison site that does this. There has clearly been a lot of thought and investment put into Wigster and perhaps they have learned from the other sites that anon mentions. Only time will tell though. What I would recommend to anon is that he/she contacts Wigster so that they can give you access to the site and let you see for yourself.
I think it's a bit naive to
I think it's a bit naive to suggest that consumers will not be interested in comparing legal prices. True, they won't be interested in the actual website (why would they be) but the service that it offers (assuming it lives up to its billing) will be of interest. Consumers are price driven; hence the popularity of PCWs in other areas such as car insurance; gas; elec; etc. Ultimately this type of product will live or die by its ability to catch the imagination of the public, which is why it is essential that it is heavily marketed as has been suggested.
Wigster
I suspect that Money Supermarket dropped ou the the PI market because there really is nothing much to compare there - generally it's no win no fee for all operators in that sector...
Wigster
I am a solicitor and also one of those that were asked to have an early look at the site.
I liked the concept and applaud Nick for being a solicitor who gets off his arse and has a go at challenging the big name brands with their massive marketing clout who will soon be ripping into our profession.
On the basis that you don't pay an up front fee, only pay for clients that you actually take on, that you can charge your normal charge out rates etc, I really cannot see why there is so much negativity about this announcement (unless the various anons are from one of the competing web sites of course :-) ).
The more of these websites that law firms join the better. If they don't manage to pick up any work what have they lost?
Chris Cann
Speaking as a consumer
Speaking as a consumer, I am interested in legal comparison websites and have used several just recently in a bid to find a firm to help me with my mother's will. We don't have a family solicitor, I've never had to use one since I bought my house yonks ago and I thought the sites would prove useful in giving me an initial guide on price and the service I should expect. I've always thought law firms have a bit of a 'threshold problem' and this coupled with the fact that I didn't really want to explain myself several times over the phone meant that research via the web was an attractive option. My only disappointment was that the sites I used fell some way short of what most consumers would expect of a comparison site - it's a rapidly maturing market and whatever you may think of their garish advertising, the likes of Go Compare and Compare the Market have set a high standard in terms of user experience.
If wigster can indeed pull off the instant pricing trick, then that will be to their credit as it would seem to be a 'no brainer' for any credible comparison site and yet it frustrated me no end to see POA pop up or to wait 48 hours for a response. Plus useful supporting info was also patchy. Not what I was expecting. I'd also agree with the earlier comment about the need for heavy marketing. No-one needs to google 'insurance comparison' these days - I googled various terms and had to wade through a fair bit of dross before I found a few reasonable sites - none of which I'd ever heard of before, mind. TV advertising doesn't guarantee you become a household name but it sounds as if wigster does at least understand the importance of brand building. Good luck to them.
The previous poster has,
The previous poster has, perhaps unwittingly, identified why legal price comparison sites will always fail.
S/he says, "[i]f wigster can indeed pull off the instant pricing trick ..."
The problem is that selling legal services is not the same as selling baked beans. Providing legal services is perhaps analogous to selling motor mechanical services - try phoning your local motor mechanic today and asking him for a price to "fix my car". Everybody knows that the mechanic is going to need to see the car, inspect it, and make a thorough assessment before talking about how much the job is going to cost, and perhaps offering a range of payment options.
I accept that conveyancing lends itself to instant quotations, but little else in the range of legal services does. As an employment solicitor running my own firm I signed up to a quote website and what I get all day long is emails asking me to provide a quote for dealing with "a dismissal" or "a grievance". I challenge anyone to price up such a request for an instant quotation.
When I take on new clients I ask them whether they want a fixed price or to pay-as-you-go at my hourly rate. I explain to them that a fixed price is likely to end up being more expensive than the pay-as-you-go option because I have to anticipate and build in the risk of prolongation at the outset. For this reason I suspect fixed price legal services will often leave the client paying more than is necessary.
I would also make the obvious but sometimes overlooked point that cost is not always the most important factor for clients. Some people prefer to pay more for a bit of decent service; these people have the attitude that it's worth paying a bit more for "finest" sausages in the supermarket because they are far superior to "own brand" sausages".
It could be argued that potential clients using price comparison websites are only interested in sourcing the cheapest possible service, in which case they should be left to the "sausage factories" who base their business on low cost volume, leaving non-sausage factory firms to look after those clients who want proper and personal service.
Wigster is very happy to prove its credentials
It would appear that anon has some strongly held views based on what appears to be an unfortunate experience at the hands of another site which is clearly far less developed that wigster.com. It is exactly those type of “quote” sites to which anon refers, that are unfortunately shaping solicitors opinions about such sites. I can assure you that wigster.com is not such a site and has been very well developed to address all of the concerns you quite righty raise.
It may be that you wish to remain anonymous. However, if you would care to give us the opportunity, I would be more than happy to arrange a demonstration to show you how wigster.com has overcome the issues which you have raised.
The experience you have had is indeed unfortunate. I can assure you that wigster.com is able to pull of the “instant pricing trick” and we have also created a means of overcoming the problem you refer to as “fix my car”. We are able to clearly and concisely define exactly the work which will be quoted for, this has been done to such a level that we are able, and do, take your prices (and service features) from you before a potential client even logs onto our site.
I also very much like your analogy about the “finest” and “own brand” sausages. You are entirely correct that price is not and should not be the defining factor in choosing a solicitor. It is for that very reason wigster.com allows potential clients to search not only on price, but location, star ratings (based on customer feedback) and service features. It may be that a particular solicitor is cheaper than the next, however wigster’s use of “service features” such as home visits, online case tracking, email correspondence and priority call backs, again allow the potential client to make a more considered evaluation of the solicitors they may wish to use.
In relation to what the solicitor receives by way of information from the client, you are again basing your opinion on other sites, and not wigster.com. We obtain from the potential client their personal details, and the answers to between 5 and 15 questions, very much like those you would ask at a first meeting with the client. This enables us to provide a more definitive price whist at the same time securing valuable and time saving information for our solicitor members. We do provide valuable and useful information to our member firms.
In short we aim to do the job properly; we hope this will create a positive user experience and a rewarding referral for our solicitor members. As such we value greatly feedback from solicitors and website users alike and we are committed to refining our offering to deliver the best service.
To this end, I would welcome the opportunity the change your views by proving a demonstration and answering any questions you may have.
Nick Miller, MD wigster.com
I notice that Mr Miller's
I notice that Mr Miller's site isn't even active yet for clients.
So how can we know that it works in the way he claims?
I want to sue my neighbour for a boundary claim please - anyone able to do it for 3 guineas?
I could see this taking off...
As commenters have rightly noted, many legal services cannot be achieved on a fixed-fee basis, and Wigster cannot hope (and does not, I'm sure...) to cover all bases.
However, nationwide and fixed-fee legal services are on the up, and Wigster will only help to continue this trend. It's a positive development in an industry which still leaves a lot to be desired in terms of accessibility (we've had a fantastic kick up the arse by the forthcoming LSA, but more needs to be done).
I think (and hope) the public will lap it up, perhaps in some areas (conveyancing, probate, RTAs, PI...) more than others.
All in all, it seems to me like an extremely healthy development! I'll be fascinated to chart its progress. Good luck Nick.
website
Mr Hall states “it isn’t active for clients yet”.
The site is fully developed, tested and working, the reason we have not opened it up to consumers as yet, is that our member solicitors need to be able to provide the prices which form the comparisons. It is for this the reason we are focusing our marketing on solicitors at the moment.
After all a comparison site with no like for like comparisons would not achieve the desired result for the consumer, the member solicitor or us.
“So how can we know that it works in the way he claims?” In the words of the Meerkats, “simples”. Please allow one of our team to give you a
T Bowler - Operations Director
Don't be naive!
If you don't believe there is a future behind these sites then just look at what has happened in the insurance industry! Meerkats and Tenors...Need I say more?
I have looked at LegalCompare .com and this is a serious site with serious prospects.
If you aren't scared of the ABS coming in next year then simply just ignore these sites. If you are scared then my advice, SNAP THEIR HANDS OFF!
what a daft post
All the price comparison sites you must ignore.
It is one of many website models doing the same thing and which will fail. It is a bad business idea for the proprietors, and incredibly bad marketing tool for the legal firms.
If I recommend a solicitor it is not because they are 'cheap'. I won't recommend Tesco Value when I can recommend Waitrose.
Never never market yourself on price, or you will fail big time. Bulk conveyancing law firms are the example.
'Service' is key and so many law firms are not delivering in the current climate.
I can see this website, like the rest, as for firms who stress price first.
Hey everyone I am cheap. Won't necessarily do a good job as corners have to be cut to be this cheap, but we are cheap.
demo site
Hi all
There seems to be some very strong views and opinions (especially from anonymous posts) on how wigster.com works and operates yet none of you have given us the opportunity to demonstrate our website nor given us a call so that we can explain how our system works and why we are different from the rest.
If you would like access to our demo site please call our main office number on 0844 247 7700, or email info@wigster.com, and either ask for me directly or our Managing Director Nick Miller.
Many thanks
Tony Bowler
Operations Director
Wigster
I think the quality of service is key above price when it comes to professional services like solicitors. I'd also ideally want the firm to be local to my work or home. In looking around at the number of sites offering a similiar service, lawyerscompare.com seems to be the most comprehensive in helping to make firms approachable. They don't offer a direct price comparison but have comprehensive 'facebook' like profiles allowing solicitors & law firms to effectively market themselves.
I don't see how this new site can compete with established sites such as quality solicitors and www.lawyerscompare.com
In response to What a Daft Post?
A legal comparison site is not purely designed to promote the cheapest law firms.
The comparison websites offer more than this - LegalCompare.com for example also organises law firms in respect of customer satisfaction, proximity and specialisms and the final choice ultimately rests with the consumer.
That said, do you really think that the likes of Tesco etc are not going to compete on the issue of pricing? In my opinion law firms, like every other commercial entity, needs to look at their pricing structure and consider whether its competitive - the level of legal expertise is a given. If someone can do the same job cheaper, to the same standard, can you really blame the consumer going to them. You certainly cannot stop them!
We also need to remember that the majority of consumers would rather deal with a third party than a law firm direct in the first instance. Like them or not, Claims Management Companies have gone from strength to strength in the last 10 years for one simple reason - demand.
I really don't understand why lawyers are so negative about the comparison sites - surely these, and any other ways lawyers try to compete against the impact of Tesco Law, should be applauded.