Concerns regarding transfer of deeds and money laundering requirements

[Tyler99]

I have given a family member a sum of £4,000 so she can transfer the ownership of her property in her sole name following a relationship breakdown. She was short of this amount in order to complete the transaction. The solicitor requested details of the transfer for money laundering purposes and I went to the bank and obtained statements which I photographed and sent in an e-mail. I was advised at the time this was acceptable. I also provided a photocopy of my driving license as requested. My sister has since come back to me 6 weeks later to advise that the solicitor now needs the same statements but in pdf form? He has also requested a photograph of my husbands driving license as we have a joint savings bank account. I had transferred the amount of money needed from our joint savings account into my sole visa account which I then forwarded on to her. Her solicitor has also further requested details of both mine and my husbands occupation/employment history including our saving history (where has our money come from) which I find totally intrusive for an amount of £4,000. I'm really unhappy about this amount of scrutiny. I do not have anything to hide, but I really think this is way over the top for the amount I have given her. Can anybody please enlighten me. I fully appreciate the money laundering aspect but what I don't fully appreciate is the delay in these requests and the outright intrusiveness for the relatively small sum I gave her. He has also requested to be advised if the money was a gift or loan. Again I feel that this is over indulgent as this agreement is between myself and my sister. There is no written agreement between my sister and I for any repayment of the money and as far as her solicitor is concerned I have told him it is up to her if she can pay me back or not. Any guidance/advice would be truly appreciated as this just seems way over the top. Thank you in anticipation.

[atticus]

I see that you posted in the small hours this morning. I trust that after a good night's sleep and in the light of day you are calmer and have decided that you will do what you have been asked to do to help your sister.

For what it's worth, I am presently explaining to my mother why she needs to provide similar information when she is giving money to help my daughter buy a house.

[Tyler99]

I see that you posted in the small hours this morning. I trust that after a good night's sleep and in the light of day you are calmer and have decided that you will do what you have been asked to do to help your sister.

For what it's worth, I am presently explaining to my mother why she needs to provide similar information when she is giving money to help my daughter buy a house.

I'm used to working nights as a nurse so that was not really a late night for me. My circadian rhythm I suppose. I further did not feel I was particularly vexatious or unreasonable however again I guess that is rather subjective. I appreciate your input however my concerns remain. This is a relatively small amount of money for such an intrusive amount of required information. At what point are laundering checks deemed appropriate as we have just purchased a new car and having traded in our old car we had a balance of £9,000 to pay which was straightforward insofar as straight out of our account. No checks as to how the money had been acquired. Again I appreciate that solicitors have responsibilities to withhold the law however I remain of the opinion that this is way over the top for the sum involved. At this rate I'm sure he'll want to do a money laundering check on both myself and my husband and of course charge for the unnecessary services and delays (Now that's a rant!). I should have become a Member of Parliament. I'll check with the bank before I do anything, but it goes without saying of course I will help my sister, but I am not prepared to go down a rabbit hole for supposed required information as to how I acquired my savings. Can anyone confirm if laundering checks come into effect after a sum of £3,000 is involved. This is a relatively straight forward intervention in relation to the transfer of deeds into her sole name and thus far it has taken over 4 months with both parties in agreement. Go figure!

[islandgirl]

I agree that it is infuriating especially for a relatively small sum. I agree that it is over the top. However as so often we have to say "that's how it is" and get on with it although it doesn't mean we feel any better about it!

[atticus]

Solicitors do not withhold the law - they may uphold it!

Property transactions are often used in money laundering, and can be subject to a high level of scrutiny if the authorities become suspicious. Solicitors have been struck off for breaches of money-laundering laws and regulations relating to verification of sources of funds. That is a good reason for them to take a very cautious approach. I expect that there are similar things in your practice as a nurse.

[Tyler99]

My apologies it was a Typo, although I am glad you suggested that solicitors as regards the law 'may' uphold it! I'll leave it there. Thank you.

[PallasAthena]

It's always struck me that the ML regulations are inconsistent. They mostly seem to get triggered when one person gives/lends cash to another for some purpose. We can rant about its disproportionality but I've learned that in financial organisations if the ML officer has decided that's what they need to know you either do it their way or it doesn't happen - or worse, you end up with the bank account frozen.

But if you your use your cash to buy consumer goods for yourself no-one asks where you got the money. My brother recently bought a new car for cash (direct transfer from his UK bank account by debit card to UK main dealer), around £30,000. Dealer selling the car had never had any dealings with him before and knew nothing whatsoever about him but asked nothing about the source of funds or his personal circumstances.

[islandgirl]

I

But if you your use your cash to buy consumer goods for yourself no-one asks where you got the money. My brother recently bought a new car for cash (direct transfer from his UK bank account by debit card to UK main dealer), around £30,000. Dealer selling the car had never had any dealings with him before and knew nothing whatsoever about him but asked nothing about the source of funds or his personal circumstances.

So true, Or if you buy a holiday for many thousands of pounds - who checks?

[PallasAthena]

He has also requested to be advised if the money was a gift or loan. Again I feel that this is over indulgent as this agreement is between myself and my sister. There is no written agreement between my sister and I for any repayment of the money and as far as her solicitor is concerned I have told him it is up to her if she can pay me back or not. .

If a lender is providing a mortgage to your sister for rest of the funds then this a standard enquiry all financial institutions have to make. Nothing to do with ML but because of the government's requirement that lenders carry out "affordability" checks on all borrowers to make sure they can afford to make the mortgage repayments and aren't over-borrowing.

So if your sister borrowed additional money to complete the purchase (whether from you or anywhere else) and has to make regular repayments of that loan as well as the mortgage repayments the mortgage lender has to take those additonal loan repayments into account when it does its 'affordability' check.

If it were me (but I am not a lawyer) I would describe it as a gift as there's no legal obligation on her to repay you.