Penrith Building Society Conveyancing Panel Information

The information on this page is designed to keep solicitors and licensed conveyancers abreast of latest requirements changes by Penrith Building Society and to assist in remaining on the Penrith Building Society Approved Conveyancing Solicitors.

Penrith Building Society Conveyancing Panel Assistance:

What are the Penrith Building Society conveyancing panel arrangements?
Unlike the CML the Building Society Mortgage Instructions deal with this. Section A.12 states ‘In order to act on our behalf your firm or company must be a member of our conveyancing panel provided we are a society that operates one – see specific requirements for details of our arrangements. The Special Requirements state:

Firm must have minimum of 3 partners/principals and provide copy of the acting partner's practicing certificate and confirmation of professional indemnity insurance. Contact point see above.

You must also comply with the terms and conditions of your Penrith Building Society solicitor panel appointment.

Can my practice make a complaint to the BSA about being removed excluded suspended from the Penrith Building Society conveyancing panel?
The BSA is an association rather than a regulator and therefore cannot investigate complaints against lenders. You can of course contact us to see if we can help.
Do Penrith Building Society or the BSA run professional training seminars for the Penrith Building Society approved conveyancing panel in much the same way that the Law Society run cases for CQS accedited practices?
No such training is arranged by the BSA however they do organise numerous useful conveyancing related conferences which are attended by firms on the Penrith Building Society conveyancing panel. It is our intention to run specific lender focused seminars in the near future including a webinar on Penrith Building Society’s requirements . Solicitors on the Penrith Building Society conveyancing panel are welcome . Further details will be made available as part of the LENDERmonitor change Notifications .
What obligations do I have, being on the Penrith Building Society conveyancing panel, to carry out a Lawyer Checker Search, an HS2 search?
Penrith Building Society make no specific obligation to carry out any of the searches listed. The BSA Mortgage Instructions simply states that ‘you must ensure that any other searches which may be appropriate to the particular property, taking into account its locality and other features are carried out’.

Remember that most ‘less usual searches’ (as described in the Law Society’s Conveyancing Handbook) are not optional as far as Penrith Building Society are concerned if they are ‘appropriate’. Most lenders will not require environmental searches (you should Check the Penrith Building Society Specific Requirements of BSA Handbook to be sure), but you are obliged to explain risks and availability to the client.

Ground stability, Plansearch,flood searches as well as the searches listed in the question are optional – but only to the extent that you have allowed the borrower client to make an informed choice. Regardless of whether there is a mortgage, If you have not advised the client that these (and other) searches are available and what risks they cover, then you will be liable if the client suffers loss through not conducting one.

Are there conditions,outside the BSA Mortgage Instructions, that a firm should be aware of when on the Penrith Building Society conveyancing panel?
In order to be on the Penrith Building Society conveyancing panel solicitors have to complete an application form and agree Terms and Conditions. A sample of 5 conditions that we see amongst many lenders Terms (but not necessarily Penrith Building Society) are as follows:
  • To quote on all communications with us relating to deeds issues, whether by telephone or in writing, the panel number that we provide for each practising address and the mortgage account or application number for the mortgage concerned.
  • To forward the title deeds and documents to another solicitor within 24 hours of an instruction from us requiring you to do so. On forwarding the deeds as instructed you will confirm to us that you have done so. Upon receipt of your confirmation, we will release you from all undertakings relating to your holding the title deeds.
  • That any deeds you borrow from us in connection with the personal mortgage of a partner or director at your firm must be requested by a partner or director other than the partner or director concerned and the transaction must be handled by that other partner or director. If you are a sole practitioner and require the loan of deeds in connection with your own mortgage, you must nominate a different firm on our panel to request the deeds and handle the transaction.
  • To be responsible for the reconstitution of the title deeds (whether the title is registered or unregistered, at your own cost), where any deeds in your possession, or were last known to be in your possession, go missing.
  • To notify us in writing of any change in your details as held on our records for example, change of address, telephone number, document exchange number email address. Notification must be given to us at least 10 days before the change will be effective.
The firm that I work for is on the Penrith Building Society conveyancing panel. I am dealing with Penrith Building Society mortgage on a purchase. My borrower client is asking not to disclose an issue to Penrith Building Society. What do I do in this conflict situation?
When a solicitor is acting for both Penrith Building Society and borrower there is potential for conflicts to arise. You owe duties to both clients. All information received by you from your client is confidential and cannot be disclosed without the client’s consent.

In your situation, if the purchaser will not consent to the information being passed on to the lender, the solicitor must cease to act for Penrith Building Society and it may well be prudent for you to cease to act for the purchaser as well. You must not inform Penrith Building Society of the reason for termination of the retainer over and above the fact that a conflict has arisen. The fact that you can no longer act should alert even the most somnambulistic of lenders that something is wrong with the borrower and/or purchase. The fact that you have disinstructed yourself should not affect your Penrith Building Society conveyancing panel status.

What lender panels do you receive the most questions about?
BSA lenders do not come within the top 20 lenders in terms of frequency of questions. The most popular lender panels in terms of questions are as follows:

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Average number of days to register title including a charge in favour of Penrith Building Society
This information relates to purchase only and not remortgages.
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* Data aggregated from sources including COMPLETIONmonitor