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approved by Britannia
Ready to buy a new home? Failing to check that a lawyer is on the Britannia list of approved solicitors can put your transaction at risk of delay or failure.
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How does my firm apply to be on the Britannia Conveyancing Panel? How can my firm be reinstated onto the Britannia Conveyancing Panel?Find an Approved Solicitor on the Britannia Conveyancing Panel
Britannia Conveyancing Panel : Questions and Answers
I am progressing with the sale of my apartment and the estate agent has just called to advise that the purchasers are changing their property lawyer. I am told that this is due to the fact that Britannia will only deal with property lawyers on their conveyancing panel. On what basis would a big named mortgage company only deal with certain law firms?
UK lenders have always had an approved set of law firms they are willing to work with, but in the past few years big names such as Nationwide , have reviewed and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have worked with them for more than 25 years.
Lenders point to the increase in fraud by way of justification for the cull – criteria have been tightened and a smaller panel should be easier to keep an eye on. No lender will say how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society says it is being contacted daily by practices that have been removed from panels, or have other concerns about them. Some do not even realise they have been dropped until contacted by a borrower who has instructed them as might be the situation in your buyer’s case. Your purchasers are unlikely to have any sway in the decision.
Can you help?. For no fault of my lawyer but, the conveyancing for my house purchase has been going on for months. The Local Authority Search from Britannia was date stamped random date and we have agreed a date for me to move into the property on 6. My lawyer says that as she is on the Britannia conveyancing panel she needs to redo the searches as they are now out of date.
One of the many conditions to being on the Britannia approved panel is to comply with the CML Handbook requirements (last updated for this lender on Britannia)which specifies that a local authority search be not more than half a year old. You should nevertheless ask your lawyer to check whether something called ‘search validation’ indemnity insurance is acceptable to Britannia.
I have checked your search tool I can't find the lawyer I was hoping to instruct as being on the Britannia conveyancing panel. My lawyer has said that they are on the Britannia approved panel. How can I be sure given that they are not listed on your directory?
Not all firms are yet listed on our lender panel search tool which is still relatively new. Law firms are listing on a daily basis and it is probably the case that your lawyer is on the Britannia conveyancing lawyer and you should probably take them at their word. Please do feel free to suggest that they completing their listing on our site as it would only cost them £1 a month to list themselves as being on the Britannia solicitor panel.
My grandmother passed away 10 months ago and as sole heir and executor was left the house. The house had a relatively small loan remaining of approximately £4500. I want to transfer the title deeds into my name whilst I re-mortgage to Britannia , pay off the mortgage etc. Is this possible?
If you intend to re-mortgage then Britannia will insist on your using a conveyancer on the Britannia conveyancing panel. Here is link to the Land Registry online guidance around what to do when a property owner dies. This will help you to understand the registration process behind changing the details re the registered title. in your case it would appear that you are effectively purchasing the property from the estate. Your Britannia conveyancing panel solicitor pays the new mortgage money into the estate, the estate pays off the old mortgage, the charge is released and you become the owner and the Britannia mortgage is registered as a charge at the Land Registry.
Are all solicitor practices on the Britannia conveyancing panel overseen by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority?
As a firm of solicitors, in order to be on the Britannia conveyancing panel they would need to be regulated by the SRA. Many lenders do allow licenced conveyancers on their panel in which case such firms would be regulated by the Council of Licensed Conveyancers (CLC).
We were going to get a DIP from Britannia this week so we know how much we could potentially offer as otherwise we are dependent on web based calculators (which aren't taking into account credit checks etc).Do the Britannia recommend a solicitor on the Britannia conveyancing panel, or is it better to find our own lawyer
You will need to appoint solicitors independently although you'll need to choose one on the Britannia conveyancing panel. The solicitor represents both you and the Britannia through the process.
I have paid off my mortgage with Britannia. I assume I don't need a solicitor on the Britannia panel to remove the mortgage at the Land Registry. Please confirm
If you have finished paying off your Britannia mortgage they may send you evidence showing that you have paid it off. Alternatively they may notify the Land Registry directly. The Land Registry need to see this evidence before they will remove the Britannia mortgage from the register. Britannia,and any evidence they send you, will determine the action you need to take. In cases where no conveyancer is acting for you and you have paid off your mortgage:
but are not moving to another property
where the Britannia has sent the Land Registry the discharge electronically, and
the Britannia has instructed the Land Registry to do so
The Land Registry will send you a letter confirming that your Britannia mortgage has been paid off.
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Transfer of Equity for BritanniaPlease note that Lexsure Ltd is in no way associated with nor affiliated with Lexsure Solicitors