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Not really right. @danstuff will know more, but like all contracts if one of you breaks it the other can sue for breach of contract and force the contract to complete through the courts so you will cover your losses and probably get the house too. Again tho, you’d have to be proper, mega unlucky.
Hefty-
@Hefty is right - gold star - although you missed out the magical words 'specific performance'. If the seller refuses to complete you can sue them for out-of-pocket expenses (the cost of temporary accommodation and moving expenses, for example), they have to pay a daily penalty for late completion under the Standard Conditions of Sale (5th Ed) and you can bring proceedings (a claim for specific performance) requiring them to sell to you, and if they refuse to obey that, the court will sign the transfer on their behalf. And they'll have to pay the costs of the claim, which will be massive if there's any justice in the world. Anything but Scot free.
Brommers
From what I could find on the internet, the penalty for a buyer pulling out is usually the value of the deposit, 5-10% of the sale price. But for the vendor there is no deposit for them to forfeit so it looked to me like unless you have special clauses written up then the seller can walk off after exchange relatively scott free?