The letter from Peter Connolly hits home with this firm of solicitors, which has achieved admission to the Conveyancing Quality Scheme. We have already applied to the licensed conveyancers to join the HSBC panel, only to be told that there were no vacancies in our area.

When we asked which firms were on the panel in this area, we were told that they simply allocated the next firm on the list and would not be drawn into revealing any names. We do not know whether the list is, in fact, secret and whether it is comprised largely of licensed conveyancers.

We wonder whether other readers have accessed the information and from where?

We have already received a letter from a firm of solicitors which has HSBC bank separately represented by the said licensed conveyancing firm. We have been warned that they will require at least 11 days between exchange and completion to give the buyer’s solicitor sufficient time to deal with the separate representation. While it will be a relief to many conveyancers to have time between exchange and completion, anxious clients - fixed on their own completion dates - will again blame ‘the solicitors’ for causing delay.

Teresa Waters, Waters & Co, Birmingham