Zephyr Mortgages Conveyancing Panel Information

Please tread carefully 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 at liberty 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 must 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.

During 2013, 0 sections of the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook P2 were changed by Zephyr Mortgages. Some changes are more important than others but as a firm on the Zephyr Mortgages conveyancing panel you are of course obliged to comply with individual lender requirements, as set out in Part II of the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook. Locktons have recently pointed out in an article that non-compliance with Part 2 requirements account for a number of high value claims, and it is therefore important to be aware of any particularly onerous terms that an individual lender may impose.

Remember: CML requirements are not guidelines; they are the lender client’s instructions.

When a solicitor is acting for both Zephyr Mortgages 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 the situation you find yourself in if the purchaser will not consent to the information being passed on to the lender the solicitor must cease to act for the Zephyr Mortgages and it may well be prudent you to cease to act for the purchaser as well. You can not tell the Zephyr Mortgages 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 Zephyr Mortgages conveyancing panel status.

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 Zephyr Mortgages conveyancing panel to see if you are entitled to a reason.

CQS accreditation gives 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 join their panels. Some mortgage companies now use the scheme as the starting point for Panel approval as is the case with Astra Mortgages.

You need to contact Zephyr Mortgages to obtain standard documents. The CML Handbook includes a specific section for banks to cite who to contact to obtain standard documents. Zephyr Mortgages in their Part 2’s state: It helps to disclose the firm’s Zephyr Mortgages solicitors panel reference.