OUTSOURCING: despite cheaper locations abroad, Barnetts prefers to stay with UK staff

Bulk conveyancing firm Barnetts has chosen not to outsource some of its operations abroad after following other practices, including a top City firm, in investigating the possibility.

It has also emerged that the claims unit of London firm KSB Law is among many already to have its dictation work done in India.

Southport-based Barnetts has decided against subcontracting work to various call centres it investigated in India and the Philippines.

Instead, it hopes to boost UK staff numbers.

Last week, the firm opened its 3 million conveyancing headquarters.

Senior partner Richard Barnett said the firm had a commitment to Southport and the north-west.

'It is quite probable that other high-volume conveyancers may decide to move aspects of work abroad,' he added.

'But although it seemed attractive in the short term because of cost, we decided the same level of service could not be offered and decided to keep all operations under one roof.'

City giant Allen & Overy is expected to reach a decision on transferring a proportion of its documentation processing department to India at the end of the month.

The move would follow a successful six-week pilot in the subcontinent, and a small number of redundancies would be likely.

Hammonds' bulk remortgaging arm, Hammonds Direct, is also set to transfer some operations to India.

Last year, a north London solicitor began marketing his outsourcing service UK Typing to law firms that have embraced digital dictation.

Sunil Radia, a partner in Harrow firm The Radia Partnership, said the business has expanded into other professional services, and is now handling the dictation of hundreds of fee-earners in India.

One of the firms he confirmed as using it is KSB Law.

UK Typing sends Word files containing dictation via e-mail to offices in Delhi, where they are typed up by qualified legal secretaries and returned to the UK for quality checking and sending on to client firms by nine o'clock the following morning.

He said he is in talks with firms about expanding the services on offer, including handling calls for a personal injury firm.

Giles Rubens, a director at legal consultancy Hildebrandt, said more firms are likely to transfer elements of their work to countries with lower rates in a push for savings.

'A lot of corporates in the US are looking at having their intellectual property work provided in low-cost locations - not just the administrative work but also drafting,' he said.

Chris Baker