First Direct Conveyancing Panel Information

The Council of Mortgage Lenders (or the BSA) do not involve themselves in training although they do provided numerous general legal related conferences which are attended by firms on the First Direct conveyancing panel. We do intend to run specific lender focused seminars in the near future including a webinar on First Direct’s Part 2 requirements. Solicitors on the First Direct conveyancing panel will be invited. Information about the webinar will be made available as part of the LENDERmonitor P2 change Notifications.

The fact of the matter is that estate agents will be suffering if their clients start out on the conveyancing process using a conveyancer who is not on the panel with the purchaser’s chosen lender. Many conveyancing firms are only discovering when they begin working on a case that they are no longer able to work with that lender. Given the inevitable resultant delays in the transaction the chances of an abortive deal increases dramatically. in the circumstances there is understandable anguish on the part of the estate agent as a result of the lost time should the client have to change solicitors .

You need to be careful here as what you are proposing may not be acceptable to the lender. It is possible that you (as a non-panel firm) or the mortgage applicant are not entitled instruct a panel firm of your choice. Lenders such as Nationwide BS make it clear to their panel firms that where a non-panel member firm is instructed by one of their mortgage applicants, the lender will appoint a panel firm to carry out its instructions and to liaise with the borrower's conveyancer. You also need to make the costs implications and potential for delay very clear to your client.

For most lenders participation on the lender's panel of conveyancers is at the absolute discretion of the the lender. Many lenders reserve the right to accept or reject any application without giving any reason. You should check your original application to join the First Direct conveyancing panel to see if you are entitled to a reason.

The best placed professionals to answer this question are your insurance brokers. The chances are that on the basis that you have not been removed for fraud or negligence reasons that there will be little or no impact. The main reason why a firm would be removed off of a lender panel is due to low volume of conveyancing cases although there may be a number of criteria for First Direct solicitor panel membership. Please remember that it is always important that you complete your insurance forms accurately.

You should contact First Direct to obtain standard documents. The The Council of Mortgage Lenders Handbook includes an express section for banks to enumerate who to contact to obtain standard documents. First Direct in their Part 2’s state: Don’t forget to quote your First Direct conveyancing panel reference.