Terrafirma, a provider of ground risk assessment, has become the latest firm to join the Conveyancing Association.

Established in 2015, Terrafirma provides mining and ground risk assessment and is a provider of property searches in the UK, delivering over 10,000 ground risk reports monthly to the conveyancing sector.

As affiliate members Terrafirma will be working with the trade body for the conveyancing industry and its membership to provide support and guidance, and help clients better understand and minimise the risk to property and land from ground hazards.

Terrafirma’s Ground Report was the first to include an official Law Society-licensed CON29M, including risk assessment from all mining and natural ground instability, reducing transaction time and cost. It also provides detailed information on the risk from clay-related subsidence and trees – a major cause of building damage in the UK, and an insight into the possible long-term effects of climate change on subsidence risk and what that could mean for the homeowner.

The most recent enhancement is the property-specific risk assessment from coastal hazards. The new module, launched in September 2020, brings conveyancers detailed information on the risk to property and land from coastal flooding, landslides, and erosion prior to purchase.

Terrafirma join other CA affiliate members who are active in a number of fields including search provision, IT services, professional indemnity insurance/cyber-crime insurance, bespoke conveyancing indemnity policy provision and enhanced risk management tools, amongst others.

Affiliate members are able to attend select Policy & Strategy Board Meetings (PSB), Legal Members’ Meeting (LMM) and All Member Meetings (AMM). Each affiliate member has the opportunity to present and their details are prominently advertised on the CA website, its newsletters and on all relevant CA publications.

All affiliate members will also attend, and be promoted, at the CA annual conference and dinner.

Lloyd Davies, operations director at the Conveyancing Association, said: “We are pleased to announce Terrafirma as our newest affiliate members of the Conveyancing Association. They join a select number of affiliate Members offering professional opinion and expert ground risk assessment.

“Terrafirma were unanimously accepted by the Board to expand choice for conveyancers and continue the CA’s ambition to work collaboratively with the best service providers in our industry to influence and improve the conveyancing process.

“Given the current environment, it is even more impressive to see the commitment shown by Terrafirma to the CA and our member firms, and we are looking forward to working together on a number of important initiative.”

Tom Backhouse, CEO of Terrafirma, added: “We are delighted to be part of the Conveyancing Association and encourage a healthy, competitive and modern industry. With Terrafirma’s ongoing research and development, conveyancers can concentrate on the legal aspects of the property transaction safe in the knowledge that when it comes to ground hazards, they can leave the assessment and interpretation of risk to the experts and rely on Terrafirma’s professional opinion for their client.

“I am looking forward to meeting Conveyancing Association members at many of the new virtual events this year as we’ve been working on fresh, interactive, and engaging sessions to support conveyancers.”