The number of suspicious activity reports (SARs) made by solicitors has fallen by more than a quarter over the last year, according to figures published by the Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA).

SOCA’s third annual report showed that solicitors filed 4,772 SARs between October 2008 and September 2009, compared with 6,460 in 2007/08. The 2007/08 figure already represented a 43% fall on 2006/07, when solicitors filed 11,300 reports.

David Thomas, head of the UK financial intelligence unit at SOCA, said the fall in reports was largely due to a fall in the number of transactions in the recession.

Thomas said the major decline had been in the number of ‘consent’ SARs , whereby a solicitor is seeking consent to continue with a transaction:

‘It’s not any sign of a stepping back from reporting obligations, less awareness or higher vulnerability.’

But he added: ‘The vast majority of solicitors don’t submit any SARs.

‘Perhaps they’re not protecting themselves in the best possible way.’