Report comment

Taking the handling of the money away from Solicitors sounds like a recipe for chaos. Didn’t the Land Registry ditch its own plans to send money along a chain by some leap-frog method? Simple rule (about the handling of money): if it ain't bust don’t fix it.

Of more interest is some hard, effective assistance with ID. Not sure selfies are the answer there. For buyers, I now give them a long explanation of the risks, including the suggestion that they employ a reputable firm of private investigators to check their sellers' identities and try to ensure that these people are who they say they are. Of course, none of my clients ever do this. They don’t want to spend the money. But seriously, chain PIs could send someone to physically visit the sellers at their stated addresses exemplified in their identity documents, themselves being the subject of electronic checks to make sure this passport number or that driving licence number does actually exist in that name.

When acting for sellers however, I'm completely vulnerable. I could employ PIs myself to check out my seller clients. But, oh dear, I'd soon go bankrupt. Certainly the seller clients wouldn't pay for it.

I read an article recently suggesting that the Land Registry was possibly going to get involved in ID checks. They've certainly tracked down some frauds after the event. Why not before?