@Aridane is correct in terms of the complaints procedure.
In this case, you have no standing to complain as you are not the solicitor’s client. Your buyer could complain and may get some money off, but you won’t unless your buyer agrees to compensate you (which is unlikely).
It is very hard (and often expensive) to prove negligence. The SRA are not particularly solicitor friendly (although the previous body responsible - the Law Society was quite friendly) and no solicitor wants an investigation by it. However, in your case they are unlikely to be that interested for a variety of reasons - you’re not their client, it’s not anything serious like fraud, it’s fairly minor in terms of things they will look at etc... I have personally dealt with serious fraud cases where it was hard to get the relevant authorities to act.
In addition, whilst the service might not have been great - this is not negligence as the “issue” was picked up before the solicitors client was committed to proceed. You have complained in your OP about how lazy, incompetent etc this solicitor is, but has that genuinely been the case throughout or has he/she missed one detail (in a number of things to check) but discovered it at the end (and in time from his/her clients perspective) ? People are only human and while I do understand how upsetting this is, I’d suggest you try to relax. House buying is very stressful.
You are selling your house and until you have exchanged contracts, the transaction is still at risk. To act otherwise is quite foolish (sorry).
Whilst with domestic conveyancing it is historically more common to have a week between exchange and completion, it is not always the case. This week was to allow the mortgage company to process the Buyer’s solicitors final confirmation everything was ok, known as the certificate of title (as they often act for the mortgage company as well) and transfer completion monies (which used to take up to 5 days). It also had the advantage of allowing you a period of time to confirm movers etc knowing you were contractually bound to proceed.
The risk with exchange and completion being on the same day is that you don’t have this week, so are committing to movers etc... without the benefit of a contract being at place. Everything is therefore at risk. Until you have exchanged contracts, nothing is certain and anyone can withdraw or delay at any time for any reason.
Simultaneous exchange and completion is more common in commercial transactions. For domestic conveyancing, it adds speed (which is the advantage) but there is the added risk of arranging to move without the benefit of a contract being in place (downside).
I personally think the problem with domestic conveyancing is the race to the bottom in terms of fees. It’s probably the most expensive purchase you’re going to make, and yet everyone resents paying the solicitor for their service. The low fees demanded for this type of work (particularly when compared to what you pay the estate agents who do very little in comparison) mean it is not viable for qualified solicitors to do the work. It is therefore generally carried out by unqualified paralegals and conveyancers using a computerised case management system, who will only have their work checked by someone qualified at the last stage when it comes to submitting the certificate of title, as that is the bit where the solicitor’s have to commit to confirming everything is fine to proceed. It’s no wonder it has one of the highest complaints / number of insurance claims than any other area of law. (By the way I’m not slagging off conveyancers - many work very hard and are knowledgable, but many are also young law students/paralegals in call centre type set ups).
I get you’re angry, but I’d suggest there’s a couple of things to learn here:
- Until you’ve exchanged a sale can always fall through or be delayed. Act accordingly and look after yourself - don’t commit to costs until you have exchanged.
- If you want a better service, pay for it. It will cost more than £350 though !