Having taken advantage of the free legal services provided by Abbey and Halifax, Jonathan Burridge, director of Quantum Mortgage Brokers, was far from pleased with the conveyancing services the lenders provided.
He told Mortgage Introducer: “In the past week we have had three instances where solicitors acting for Halifax and Abbey have caused delays or a problem in a completion.
“A firm acting on instruction from Halifax realised on the day of completion that a document they had held for some five weeks without checking prevented a remortgage from concluding. Had the problem been identified in an appropriate time frame it could have been resolved without delaying the completion.”
As a result of these problems Quantum Mortgage Brokers has had two complaints lodged against it by clients which Burridge took to the lenders. He said complaints had also been lodged concerning other lenders.
Upon being notified of the problems Halifax offered to seek compensation from the solicitors dealing with the case while solicitors acting on behalf of Abbey have been informed of the grievances.
Despite acknowledging Halifax’s efforts after the complaint was lodged, Burridge was concerned about the effect the complaints would have on his business. “These complaints are indicative of the fee-free services given,” he said.
“We get judged regardless of whether it’s our fault or not. If you have one complaint against your firm, it’s one too many. It costs us time and money while we’re also trying to retain the client. Halifax did actually thank us for bringing this to its attention as it has brought up concerns about the conveyancer it is using.”
Paul Fincham, spokesperson for Halifax, confirmed that following the complaint it was looking into the matter.
