Lawyers ‘not trusted’ by majority, says consumer watchdog

Under half of the general public trust lawyers, according to the results of a survey commissioned by consumer watchdog the Legal Services Consumer Panel.

Published today, the research reveals that only 47% of people in England and Wales trust lawyers to tell the truth. That figure drops to 38% for those aged 18-24 and 34% for people from non-white backgrounds.

Lawyers ranked third in the table of ‘trustworthy’ professions, after doctors, who were trusted by 85%, and teachers, trusted by 71%.

Pollsters YouGov questioned 1,277 members of the public aged 18 and over, and 1,114 adults who had used legal services in the last two years.

They found that 31% of the general public had used legal services in the last two years, most commonly for conveyancing, will-writing and family matters.

More positively for lawyers, the research shows that most consumers whose matters had finished (84%) were satisfied or very satisfied with the outcome of the legal work. However this varied depending on the area of work.

While nine out of 10 consumers were happy with the outcomes and service received for will-writing, fewer than seven in 10 were happy with the outcomes and service for accident or injury claims.

The research highlighted areas where solicitors are falling short on some aspects of service, with 11% of respondents dissatisfied with levels of communication and 12% unhappy with the timeliness of work done.

Just over half (51%) of respondents said they would be confident complaining about a lawyer, although only 44% said they knew how to go about doing so.

Of the 86 respondents who said they had been dissatisfied with the service they received, 35% did nothing about it and only 13% made a formal complaint to the service provider.

Consumers were not all satisfied with the price they paid for their legal services – 56% of respondents considered they had got value for money.

Despite some dissatisfaction with pricing, the incidence of consumers shopping around for legal services was low, with 19% saying they had done so. This rose to 29% for conveyancing.

When it came to choosing a lawyer, previous use of the provider was the most common factor, followed by referrals from another organisation and recommendation by family or friends.

Reputation was the most important factor, with 18% of recent users saying this had influenced their choice.

Specialism, speed, location and price were other important factors. Just 1% of respondents had used a price comparison website before picking their solicitor, and 5% had used quality marks to help them choose.

The panel released the findings ahead of the publication of its Consumer Impact Report, which aims to assess the progress of the legal services reforms against the panel’s vision for the market. That report is due later this month.

Panel chair Dianne Hayter said: ‘Consumers place their trust in lawyers to protect their interests when they are at their most vulnerable, so it is extremely worrying that fewer than half of the public say they would generally trust lawyers to tell the truth.

'The profession must look hard at itself and work to restore confidence in lawyers as trusted advisers.'

Hayter said that although most consumers get the outcome they want when using legal services, lawyers are not meeting their clients’ expectations in some crucial areas.

‘No doubt businesses poised to enter the legal market from October will take note that consumers are demanding better value for money and excellent service from their lawyers,’ she said.

Law Society president Linda Lee said: ‘It is encouraging to see that of the 10 professions looked at, lawyers are the third most trusted by the public. We will continue to work with the profession to enhance their standing further. It is also encouraging to see that the vast majority of clients consider they get a good service from their solicitor and that they act professionally.

‘These findings follow the Ministry of Justice’s recent report which found high satisfaction levels among legal services users (94% of whom had used a solicitor). In that survey 91% felt they had been provided with good service and 93% said they were satisfied with the outcome from the service provided.

‘However, perhaps more concerning and confusing is that the LSCP should seek to portray what are predominantly positive findings about the legal profession so negatively, a decision which perhaps says more about LSCP than it does about the legal profession.’