Gen H Conveyancing Panel Information

Please tread carefully here as what you are suggesting may not be acceptable to the mortgage company. It is possible that you (as a non-panel firm) or the mortgage applicant are not at liberty instruct a panel firm of your choice. Many lenders 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 conveyancing firm. You also need to make the costs implications and potential for delay very clear to your client.

You will be aware of the trend in recent years for lenders such as Gen H to take a much more pro-active approach in relation to the management and make up of their conveyancer panels. The knock on effect of this is that it is more likely that there will be a higher number of cases where a conveyancer is not on the Gen H panel. The situation that you find yourself in is where your client’s purchaser has his/her own lawyer and Gen H have appointed a separate lawyer to act on their behalf where the new CML Part 3 requirements apply. Section 11.1 of the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook Part 3 requires Gen H’s panel solicitor to ‘ ...transfer the mortgage advance directly to the Seller’s conveyancer. The Seller’s conveyancer must be required to hold the mortgage advance on the terms of the required undertaking. The example borrower’s conveyancer’s undertaking letter includes a specific example of the seller’s undertaking’. You should expect to be advised to received the mortgage advance directly from the conveyancing solicitors for Gen H. You will no doubt be required to undertake directly to Gen H’s solicitors to discharge any charges secured on the property and to send directly to them the executed transfer and any other documents required to enable us to effect registration. Please remember to carefully consider undertakings in accordance with your firm’s protocol and record them in your undertakings logg. Please remember that as well as this breach of this undertaking having regulatory and compliance implications it’s breach could also result in your firm being removed off the Gen H conveyancing panel.

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 Gen H conveyancing panel to see if you are entitled to a reason.

On the basis that your firm in is on the Gen H conveyancing panel and you are instructed by them in relation to a leasehold property, you must report to them if it becomes apparent that the landlord is either absent or insolvent. If Gen H are to lend, they may require indemnity insurance. In any event,you will need to check Gen H’s specific requirements. Notwithstanding whether Gen H will lend in such circumstances you still need to advise the borrower (unless you are acting for Gen H alone) as to the risks of buying a property with an insolvent or absentee landlord.

It would be advisable to provide details of the date of removal, information on the reason for removal, date of appeal and any reason given for reinstatement. This should not negatively affect your application but gives the CQS team viability as to what has gone on.

You would be advised to get in touch with Gen H to obtain standard documents. The CML Handbook includes an individual question for banks to reveal who to contact to obtain standard documents. Gen H in their Part 2’s state: Don’t forget to quote your Gen H solicitors panel reference.