Small businesses have more access to information about lawyers than ever, but a sizeable number still do not have their legal needs met, the super regulator has found.

A poll of 10,000 small businesses commissioned by the Legal Services Board found that around 11% had a legal need requiring professional support, but eight in 10 of them did not have that need met.

But at the same time, the survey suggested that businesses are becoming considerably more active consumers of advice and support. Overall, 48% of businesses facing a legal issue reported shopping around for a provider, representing a 19 percentage point increase since a similar poll in 2021. While the legal profession has been criticised in the past for its lack of transparency, those seeking legal services found it considerably easier than in 2021 to obtain information about expertise, costs and services.

A large proportion of respondents reported that it was easy to identify a provider’s expertise and experience. A similar proportion found pricing information easy to obtain. In each case, this represented a large increase since 2021.

Similarly, 60% found it easy to identify whether a provider was regulated and 53% found it easy to determine whether a provider held professional indemnity insurance.

The LSB’s report suggested there is now a gap between those with high legal confidence and those who struggle to identify appropriate sources of help and wait too long before taking action.

Cost is not the factor that some might imagine: of those who got help, only 49% paid for all of the cost and 88% of those who paid for all or some of the cost found it quite or very easy to afford it.

‘Access to information alone is not enough,’ the report concludes. 'Businesses must also have the confidence and capability needed to use that information effectively. The challenge is therefore not simply improving transparency. It is ensuring businesses can engage with available information and make informed decisions.'

Despite high unmet need and the development of generative AI, chatbots were a source of help for just 6% of businesses. Some 15% of all small businesses had used AI for ‘legal advice’, for example finding a solicitor or determining what steps to take, while 17% had used it for ‘legal representation’, such as drafting a letter.