AIBU to report my solicitor for something that might have been a genuine mistake?

[Fleurty]

I moved house 3 months ago and we kept back some of our sale equity to do a bit of work at the new house. On completion day I was expecting around £16k to be transferred to our account after all the fees were paid and sale had gone through. Checked on completion day and the transfer was just under £14k so I assumed I had got my figures wrong. A final completion statement arrived in the post a few days later but in the madness of moving house it took me about 2 weeks to go though it all in detail.

By then I'd also received the final redemption paperwork for our old mortgage and the amount on our solicitors completion statement was £2300 higher than the amount our mortgage company said they had been paid.

I rang and spoke to our solicitors assistant and she instantly said 'oh yes, we spotted that we'd got a figure wrong' and the money was transferred to my account within an hour.

Part of me thinks its a simple mistake that was easily rectified, but something about the way they instantly knew what I was talking about but had made no attempt to contact me or repay the money keeps playing on my mind. If I hadn't noticed and called would they have ever contacted me?

AIBU to want to report it to someone (ombudsman?)? I don't want to make a complaint, I just can't help thinking that someone could be skimming off a few thousand from lots of transactions and keeping the ones that don't get noticed and if no one ever flags it then it will never be found out.

You won’t be able to go to the ombudsman until you’ve exhausted the firms internal complaints procedure.

It’s up to you, but they wouldn’t have been able to keep it so it probably just got parked on someone’s desk to do and as it’s not a “live” case and you weren’t chasing for the money at that point it got parked. If you complain this is all they’ll say.

Due to the SDLT holiday conveyancers are snowed under at the minute.

@Jimdandy is right, they can't keep it. Solicitors' account rules mean credits get flagged up and have to be dealt with. It's not like anyone in the firm can take money out of the account and keep it.
What shouldn't happen though is that your completion statement is wrong, it should always be checked by someone in accounts who gets a copy of the mortgage redemption statement as well as the completion statement.
Having said that, they are snowed under with work at the moment.
You can complain to the firm if you want.

As others have said, you need to follow the company's internal complaints procedure first. Only if they then don't deal with it can you take it further with the Ombudsman.
As they have already admitted it was their error and rectified it by sending you the money I don't think you would have grounds to take it further, the ombudsman would likely be satisfied with this resolution