Furness Building Society Conveyancing Panel Information

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

Furness Building Society Solicitor Panel: Recently Asked Questions

Is it probable that Furness Building Society will instruct an alternative solicitor on the Furness Building Society conveyancing panel for a further advance during the lifetime of a mortgage?
Paragraph 16.2.1 of the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook relevant to a solicitor on the Furness Building Society conveyancing panel reads ‘Our mortgage secures further advances. Consequently, when a further advance is required for alterations or improvements to the property we will not normally instruct a member of our conveyancing panel but if you are instructed the appropriate provisions of this Handbook will apply’.

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I understand that Furness Building Society could request or audit my files as I am on the Furness Building Society conveyancing panel. Are there any confidentiality issues that I need to consider first?
We can't comment specifically on Furness Building Society. Many major lenders are now introducing ‘file auditing’ as standard practice in relation to completed matters. This raises questions of confidentiality in relation to the buyer client and the purpose to which the results of such audits will be put. The starting point is to remember that the file does not belong to your firm, it belongs to the ‘client’. But, of course, we will normally have two clients – the buyer and the lender - and you will owe a duty of confidentiality to each. So basically, you have to separate the file and just send the lender the parts solely relating to themselves. But, of course, as this will basically be correspondence with the lender, mortgage instructions etc.

Check with your COLP but a firm should not send the complete conveyancing file without the buyer client’s express consent – and if he is in arrears with the lender she is hardly likely to agree. However, if the lender can establish a prima facie case of fraud, then you may be under an obligation to disclose the whole file.

The emerging convention is that lenders are including an authority to disclose in loan application forms to counter this problem. Mortgage Express v Sawali, [2010] EWHC 3054 (Ch) indicates that such provisions are valid. Please click here for more information about that case.

Given that I am the COLP for my firm what do I need to consider in terms of disclosures to the SRA if my firm is withdrawn off the Furness Building Society solicitor panel?
The answer to this question really depends on the reason that your firm has been removed off the Furness Building Society conveyancing panel. The top 3 reasons are as follows:
  1. lack of transactions
  2. the lawyer is a sole practitioner
  3. as part of the HSBC panel reduction.
In these three circumstances it is unlikely that you would expected to take any action. Disclosure and other compliance considerations are more likely to be relevant if the reason for removal is due to breaches of lender requirements or allegations of fraud or negligence. Whether the reasoning should trigger a disclosable 'material' breach will depend on the firm and the circumstances around possible failures to comply with the SRA Authorisation Rules, and the SRA will judge each case on its own merits. Factors such as the detriment or risk of detriment to clients, the scale of the issue and overall impact on the firm will need to be considered in deciding whether a failure is 'material'. As the COLP you will need systems to identify patterns of breaches. Even if you don't consider there to be regulatory implications the firms COFA should give some thought to whether she/he needs to take any action as result of being removed from the Furness Building Society conveyancing panel.
I noticed the following question on my PI renewal form this year ‘Has your Firm been asked by a lender to agree to more onerous terms and conditions than provided for in the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook?’ My firm is on numerous approved panels including the Furness Building Society conveyancing panel. We have Terms and Conditions of appointment which we have to follow. Am I supposed to mention these Terms ?
The concern here is if you are expect to enter into ‘more onerous’ conditions that than the Handbook obligations. You have to try and take an objective view as to whether the Terms relating to the Furness Building Society conveyancing appointment (or other terms for other lenders) are ‘more onerous’ than the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook Conditions. Depending on the Terms you may need to provide details on your renewal form. If you are in any doubt please call your broker to discuss before completing the answer.
I have been a qualified solicitor for over 20 years enjoy an unblemished record and have been refused acceptance on the Furness Building Society conveyancing panel with no explanation. Am I not entitled to a reason?
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 Furness Building Society conveyancing panel to see if you are entitled to a reason.
JLT’s PI Insurance renewal form enquires if my practice had been excluded from any mortgage panels in the last year. I just found out that the practice is no longer on the Furness Building Society solicitor panel? Is this likely to effect my PII cover?
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 Furness Building Society solicitor panel membership. Please remember that it is always important that you complete your insurance forms accurately.
Our practice is on the Furness Building Society conveyancing panel and all set to complete a remortgage shortly. I dont have a Mortgage Deed for the client to sign. Who do I contact at Furness Building Society to request substitute deeds?
You need to communicate with Furness Building Society to obtain standard documents. The The Council of Mortgage Lenders Handbook includes an explicit inquiry for banks to set out who to contact to obtain standard documents. Furness Building Society in their Part 2’s state:
Please remember to quote your Furness Building Society conveyancing panel reference.

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