How to reduce AP1 requisitions by up to 40%

Updated June 2024

Requisitions are a pain point for every law firm when submitting an AP1. Without a doubt, you’ll receive them on a weekly basis and managing the communication back and forth with HMLR can be a time-consuming process. With digital AP1 submissions being made mandatory following the HMLR mandate back in 2022, it's important that law firms use a trusted, reliable solution. The great news is reducing your requisitions is absolutely possible.   

How to reduce digital AP1 requisitions 

With the introduction of mandated digital AP1s has also come the introduction of validations. We recently reviewed what validations are and how they help you to reduce your requisitions. Validations essentially help to minimise the risk of ‘avoidable requisitions’ at the source by prompting users to provide necessary information and validate the details wherever possible throughout the AP1 form.  

We’ve been the leading provider of digital AP1 submissions to HMLR since 2016, with more than 1.4 million submissions completed to date. From all those submissions, we’ve spent time analysing the most common causes of requisitions and implemented features to mitigate these within our digital AP1 tool to help you.   

We provide a host of handy features to reduce the chance of receiving a requisition against your AP1 submission, including additional validations on top of HMLR's business gateway requirements to minimise errors that cause requisitions and delays in updating the register. 

AI enabled Smart AP1s make mismatched data a thing of the past. By leveraging the latest AI and document reading technology, you can now automatically extract data from TR1s, TP1s and Charges. Our system will then populate and validate your AP1, with any discrepancies highlighted to enable swift reconciliation, dramatically reducing the likelihood of a requisition.  

Our metadata can also be used to analyse and review firms’ requisition data. It identifies common errors, highlights potential gaps in user knowledge that may require additional training, as well as pinpointing application types that generate particularly high amounts of requisitions. By addressing these issues, firms can implement targeted improvements and training, leading to a long-term reduction in requisition rates. 

Thanks to all of these features, on average, InfoTrack users who submit their digital AP1 through our platform see a 40% reduction in requisitions. Find out how our market-leading digital AP1 solution has improved accuracy and led to zero AP1 cancellations in six months for Birketts. 

How to improve your AP1 requisition management 

The reality is that requisitions will continue to be an inevitable part of the AP1 process, even following the switch to digital AP1s. Whether it's due to complex transactions or additional information requirements, some validations are unavoidable.  So, given requisitions are still an essential part of the post completion process, it’s a good time to review how you manage them. Are you still using a spreadsheet or manually diarising key dates and deadlines? This could be costing you.  

The Digital Conveyancing Maturity Index 2024 found that 57% of law firms are managing their AP1 requisitions with digital dashboards to flag deadlines, automate responses, and create a digital audit trail. These digital tools make the management of requisitions simpler for law firms and remove the risk associated with potential human error or missed deadlines.  

Missing key dates can lead to expired priorities and a failure to send essential information, which can overall delay the transaction. You can minimise these risks with our digital AP1 service and AP1 dashboard.   

Let’s take a look at how these services can support your firm in improving your productivity and risk management when dealing with your post completion process.  

How to manage your requisitions with InfoTrack’s AP1 dashboard  

Requisitions and AP1 management are crucial to the post completion process. While reducing how many requisitions you receive is ideal, when they do occur, the next best option is to have a solid and reliable requisition management tool.   

Here's how our intuitive AP1 dashboard can help you monitor all your digital AP1 applications and manage any requisitions with ease.

1. Ability to sort applications by status  

Transparency across all AP1 applications firm-wide makes managing the entire process simpler. The ability to sort applications by their priority status—such as saved, in progress, requisition outstanding, or early completion—provides visibility and ensures that, even if team members are on leave or off sick, applications can be dealt with promptly, deadlines are met, and nothing is missed.  

2. View upcoming cancellations within the calendar 

Never miss key dates with automated calendar reminders. If you’re still using a manual method to track your AP1 applications, it can be easy to miss essential deadlines. Instead, the calendar within our AP1 dashboard helps you to stay on top of everything by notifying you of expiring priority searches and upcoming AP1 cancellations.

3. Email alerts make management simple 

We understand how busy conveyancers are, which can make staying on top of every transaction a juggling act. To reduce the burden, we have included email alerts for requisitions, early completion, warning of cancellation, cancellations, and completion of registration to help you keep up to date with your applications.  

4. WhatsApp-style chat system for directly contacting your caseworker 

Responding to requisitions is super simple with our in-built WhatsApp-style chat feature. This allows you to communicate directly with your HMLR case worker, answer any questions they have, and upload any additional documentation necessary, all without needing to access a separate platform. The audit trail also means you can easily refer back at any point within the same screen. 

5. Ability to acknowledge requisitions

Make recognising any requisitions that are raised easy with the ability to acknowledge them directly within the AP1 dashboard. No need to access another system. Users can also add internal notes to requisitions to ensure anyone who accesses the matter has all the information they need, such as when a colleague may pick up management of a requisition when someone is on leave or off work ill. 

6. Use of templated requests of HMLR 

Save time with templated requests—such as to request an update, extension of time, or cancellation—to increase your efficiency. Templated requests streamline the process, meaning you spend less time preparing requests and can get on top of any queries faster. 

7. Templated responses to requisitions and ability to regenerate AP1 details  

Timesaving is a big benefit for busy conveyancers which is why templated requisition responses and the ability to regenerate AP1 details swiftly is a big win. With less time spent on the administrative process related to requisitions, you can spend more time keeping your clients up to date. 

8. View daylist alongside active applications 

Having everything you need in one place makes managing the whole requisition process simpler. You don’t need to open a new tab to view the daylist as we’ve included it directly within the AP1 dashboard for you, so you have everything you need at a glance.   

You’ll also easily be able to view the status of your application in relation to other applications on the same title, allowing you to easily track the progress. 

9. Ability to resubmit cancelled applications with auto-populated information  

Sometimes, despite the best efforts of conveyancers, applications can end up getting cancelled. Maybe you're still waiting for documents from a third party, or a deadline was missed. Fortunately, with InfoTrack you can resubmit cancelled applications with auto-populated information allowing you to get applications back on track without starting from scratch, saving you time and effort.

10. Ability to Export all Applications to a CSV 

Management of AP1 applications is crucial from a compliance perspective. With InfoTrack, you can export all applications to a CSV, allowing conveyancers and law firms to easily track and manage their applications. This feature helps firms stay on top of their applications, ensuring everything is accurate, up to date, and accounted for.

11. View all related files such as application files and supporting documents  

It’s vital for conveyancers to have access to all relevant supporting documents and ensure they don’t contain any errors, or the AP1 won’t be registered successfully. With InfoTrack, all your supporting documents sit together in the related files tab, providing a holistic view of the application and making it easier to manage from submission through to registration. 

The introduction of digital AP1s can seem daunting, with learning a new system, getting familiar with validations, and finding new ways of managing your requisitions all part of the process. However, the efficiency and accuracy of digital AP1 solutions will quickly and considerably outweigh any time and effort needed to master their use. 

Don't just take our word for why you should submit your digital AP1s with InfoTrack. Read Charles Coleman's story to learn how the firm is preparing their post-completion tasks 30% faster with InfoTrack.