Fair treatment

I am disappointed that, when PK Petch (see [2002] Gazette, 16 May, 19) asked a district registry for help in obtaining a long overdue DS1, he was told that his difficulties were not the concern of the Land Registry.

I am sorry that he should have received this reply.

All our staff have received training on the new requisition procedures and should know how to deal with such a request.

In the training, we have emphasised that customers should not be penalised when they have problems in producing DS1s and ENDs.

Clearly, we should have responded positively to Mr Petch's letter and tried to resolve the difficulty with the lender.

I have reminded staff of our procedures to ensure that this situation does not arise again.

We aim to apply our new requisition policy fairly and consistently.

To achieve this aim, we need our customers' help.

If they believe we have been unfair or inconsistent they should contact the customer service manager at the office concerned.

Full contact details are on our Web site at www.landreg.gov.uk

Joe Timothy, director of practice, HM Land Registry