Petition

Make property offers legally binding upon acceptance in England and Wales

Rejected 9 signatures

What the petition asks

Introduce a law where an offer on a property becomes legally binding once accepted , to prevent gazumping, gazundering and unnecessary financial losses for buyers and sellers.
In England and Wales, buyers and sellers can pull out of a property deal anytime before contracts are exchanged, leaving both sides exposed to gazumping, gazundering, and losing money on surveys, legal fees, and mortgage costs.
In Scotland, an accepted offer becomes legally binding earlier through the conclusion of missives, giving more certainty, fewer fall-throughs, and a fairer, more efficient market.
We want a law that requires property offers to become legally binding upon acceptance.

Why it was rejected

There was already a petition about this issue. Duplicates are rejected so signatures collect in one place.

You may wish to sign the following petition, which calls for similar action:

Amend the home buying process in England to align with Scotland
Amend the home buying process in England to align with Scotland

Timeline

17 Nov 2025 Petition opened for signatures
15 Dec 2025 Rejected by the Petitions Committee

Key facts

Signatures 9
Status Rejected
Rejected 15 Dec 2025

Follow this petition

Sign in to get an email when the government responds, a debate is scheduled or held, or the petition closes.

Source: the official petition page. Last checked 31 Aug 2026.