Solicitors have better relations with their banks than other professionals, a survey revealed last week.

The survey of 360 professional firms - of which 36 were solicitors - found that an average of 36% said that their bank had not helped - or was not helping them - to grow their businesses.


However, only 23% of solicitor respondents said this was the case, compared to 47% of surveyors, 42% of accountants, and 32% of architects.


More than a quarter of all respondents (27%) said their banks did not understand their businesses.


But again solicitors recorded the lowest number of complainants - only 15% - compared with 34% of surveyors, 31% of architects and 26% of accountants.


Solicitors were also the only professionals polled who said they had never been refused an extension of financial facilities by their banks for what they regarded as a reasonable proposition. The average among the other professionals was a 4% rejection rate for finance, with the most likely to have finance rejected being the architects, at 8%.


The survey was conducted by Opinion Research Business for Professional Services Finance.