Following a review of its processing model, Abbey said it has taken the decision to revert back to using regional underwriters.
Joe Wiggins, public relations manager at Abbey, explained: “About two years ago the decision to move underwriters to central locations was taken. However, these still worked in tandem with underwriters on a regional basis at the point-of-sale. To bring everything closer to the broker, regional underwriters will return to regional areas.”
Ricky Okey, director of mortgages and protection at Abbey for Intermediaries, confirmed the ret-urn of regional underwriters underpinned Abbey’s desire to improve its level of service and to improve contact between brokers and the lender within localised regions.
He said: “About four to five months ago we started implementing changes to our operating model. Regional underwriters are to be reappointed to the North and as soon as this is in place we hope to have underwriters return to the South as well. By the end of December the new model should be fully operational.”
Okey added: “We wanted to make the system more efficient to benefit intermediaries, increasing processing speeds and giving brokers local contacts that they can call upon. A lot of time was spent working out an operating model that would enable us to do things right and with this model we intend for our service levels to be better than they were previously.”
Sarah Gwilt, mortgage adviser at Dickson Lishman Prince, welcomed the decision by Abbey to improve its service levels. “Going on what Abbey’s service is like at the moment anything is better than what it is already providing. Regional underwriters should help improve the service that it offers.”
