Zephyr Mortgages Conveyancing Panel Information

The CML, together with Zephyr Mortgages and other lenders created a standard set of instructions where a solicitor is acting for a lender such as Zephyr Mortgages alone in a residential conveyancing transaction. These legal instructions are contained at Part III of the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook and are to be followed together with Parts 1 & 2. The CML have published an example requirements letter to the borrower’s lawyer for adaptation by the lender's conveyancer, and sets out to the borrower's conveyancer, the documentary and information requirements of the lender's panel solicitor.

The requirements to join the Zephyr Mortgages conveyancing panel is likely to be fairly detailed and is unlikely to include signing up to LENDERmonitor alerts.

As is the case with the Law Society the CLC has initiated dialogue with lenders and their representative bodies to see whether and how the risks that lenders wish to mitigate could be addressed through the regulatory framework rather than via ad hoc arrangements that can differ from lender to lender. It is likely that that the CLC have been in touch with lenders such as Zephyr Mortgages as well as the CML.

We can't comment specifically on Zephyr Mortgages. 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 borrower 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 he 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.

CQS membership is no guarantee to lender panel acceptance. Nevertheless the Council of Mortgage Lenders have indicated that it is likely to become a prerequisite for firms wishing to remain on their approved list of conveyancing solicitors. A number of mortgage companies now use the Conveyancing Quality Scheme accreditation as the starting point for Panel acceptance as is the case with Astra Mortgages.

You would be advised to communicate with Zephyr Mortgages to obtain standard documents. The CML Handbook contains an explicit question for banks to reveal who to contact to obtain standard documents. Zephyr Mortgages in their Part 2’s state: Always remember to quote the firm’s Zephyr Mortgages solicitors panel reference.