The acquisition of Fitzalan Partners in February 2015 was the Group’s first move into an adjacent consumer legal services market. Fitzalan was founded in 2011 out of Fridays Property Lawyers and is an online marketing specialist targeting home buyers and sellers in England and Wales through its five web based platforms; Fridaysmove; In-Deed; Surveyor Local; Homeward Legal and BestValueConveyancing.com. Through these platforms, confirmed leads are generated for residential property services in England and Wales, and offered to Panel Law Firms (PLFs) and panel surveyors. Our reach and expertise has been further increased through the acquisition in January 2016 of Searches UK.
Fitzalan Partners is expert in marketing to a large number of consumers, processing incoming enquiries through a full sales cycle, and converting these into confirmed instructions rather than the partially qualified leads typical of the rest of the market. The residential property panel firms prefer to concentrate on their core skills, and benefit from the expertise of Fitzalan Partners marketing and sales capability.
In the last financial year, Fitzalan Partners and Searches UK we have helped over 52,000 customers with their conveyancing or survey needs.
Customers are attracted to the proposition due to the assurance provided in dealing with the company’s brands:
- Highly competitive fixed fees on residential property transactions.
- Enhanced service features such as Search Plus Protection and No Sale No Fee.
- Quality assurance through a comprehensive PLF service level agreement.
- Service mediation in the event of client complaints.
- Advice and information on the conveyancing and surveys process.
Fitzalan Partners currently generates enquiries in the form of incoming calls, online call-back requests and specific leads generated by its web quote engines. Confirmed residential property instructions from consumers are then passed to one of over 360 PLFs, which pay Fitzalan Partners and Searches UK a marketing fee per instruction.
Additional revenue is generated through agreements that Fitzalan Partners has with related suppliers such as search and surveyor companies, who deliver peripheral services which facilitate the customer instruction.
Fitzalan Partners' surveyor panel comprises around 150 firms of Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) qualified surveyors. The business markets Home Buyer Reports and Building Surveys to both buyers and sellers and provides its survey panel with a steady, controllable workflow, allowing them to plan their workload efficiently.
In 2016, Fitzalan Partners acquired Searches UK, established in 2008. Searches UK is a leading conveyancing search provider in England and Wales predominantly for residential property transactions.
The Company acts as a service provider to solicitors and licensed conveyancers providing search information across six core product categories: Local Authority, Drainage and Water, Environmental, Chancel, Planning and Flood. Searches uses a nationwide network of search agents to provide the relevant search reports.
In addition, they continuously explore the market for new product opportunities for clients that are reliable, innovative and assessable such as Lawyer Checker services, AML ID Checks, Indemnity Policies and Company Searches.
The acquisition of Searches UK is a strong, natural complement to the existing Fitzalan Partners business and brings together expertise in the residential property sector dedicated to delivering quality customer service.
