While all directly authorised intermediaries will still be able to access exclusives from the distributors, ARs from other networks will be barred.
Sally Laker, managing director of Mortgage Intelligence said the product share came about because the three networks felt comfortable about working with each other and wanted to maintain the choice available under the current sticker clubs.
“Even though we have been competitors for eight or nine years we all agreed that brokers should not be restricted to fewer products simply because they have had to chosen to become an AR,” she commented.
The networks had been discussing the idea on an informal basis for a couple of months according to Tony Jones, managing director of Pink. He said: “Access to products is key for both networks and brokers and this is a way for us to really differentiate ourselves from other networks. By coming together over these products we have added value to all our propositions.”
However Toni Corrigan, managing director of Manchester based network Classic Network Solutions, said smaller networks should not fear the alliance. “From a lender perspective exclusives are a good selling tool, but in reality something very similar is often available elsewhere,” he explained. “There are always ways of getting hold of these deals.”
