Jon Robins believes it’s time to embrace comparison websites
One feature of the post-Legal Services Act 2007 landscape is the proliferation of comparethemarket.com-style websites designed to help consumers navigate through the newly-liberalised legal services marketplace.
Earlier this month the Legal Services Consumer Panel (LSCP) published a largely positive report assessing some 16 sites (including www.lawcomparison.co.uk, www.lawyerlocator.co.uk, www.legalcompare.com, www.legallybetter.com, and www.legallyconfused.com). The LSCP research categorised specialist websites into four types: directories; feedback; referral; and price comparison sites.
“Comparison websites are a welcome new feature in legal services as they could make it easier for consumers to choose lawyers and boost competition,” commented its chair Elisabeth Davies. This came in marked contrast to a sniffy report from the Law Society towards the end of last year which was, no doubt, informed by the controversy over solicitorsfromhell.co.uk.
Reluctant acceptance?
Chancery Lane begrudgingly conceded there was “benefit in probing” (presumably with a very long stick) the comparison website model before accepting it as “a valid mechanism”. It concluded that
