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approved by Britannia

Lenders point to the fact that solicitor-led fraud is thought to be responsible for millions of pounds of fraud every year. The removal of law firms off of lender panels started with the rise in mortgage fraud, which prompted a thematic review by the Financial Services Authority in 2011. Its outcome included recommendations for lenders to review their conveyancing panels, which kicked off a major policy change in the sector. It led to banks and building societies purging less reputable firms off their books

You should not exchange unless you have advised to do so by your lawyer. A precondition to being on the Britannia approved panel is to comply with the CML Handbook requirements (last updated for this lender on Britannia). The CML Conveyancing Handbook requires that your lawyer have the appropriate Disclosure of Incentive form completed by the developer and accepted by your lender.

The solicitor and licensed conveyancing practices listed on our site have assured us via an online form that they are on the Britannia panel and agreed to advise us to take down their listing in the event of removal off of the Britannia panel. To date we have not been informed by either a bank or a member of the public that the data about a specific firm being on the Britannia conveyancing panel is not accurate.

If you have an estate agent involved then let them know straight away so that they advise the vendors that there may be a slight delay due to reasons beyond your control. Hopefully they will be sympathetic and urge their lawyer to send a new set of papers to your new solicitors. You will need to appoint new lawyers that are on the Britannia conveyancing panel and notify the lender. If you have paid over any money it will hopefully be held by the SRA as money in an intervened firm's bank accounts is transferred to the SRA. Then, the SRA or the intervention agent looks at the intervened firm's accounts to work out who the money belongs to. To claim your money you will need to contact the SRA. If the SRA cannot return money you are owed from the firm's bank accounts, or if they can only return part of the money, you can apply to the Compensation Fund for a grant. Your new lawyers may be able to help

seeking recommendations is a good start. Before you go ahead check if they offer a no sale no fee offer. Also you often get what you pay for - a firm which quotes more will often provide a better service than one which is cheap as chips. We would always suggest that you speak with the lawyer handling your transaction

Ask Britannia to suggest a law firm in your location. Lenders have them all over the country. You can also use our search tool at the top of this page to search for a lawyer on the Britannia conveyancing panel based on location. If you particularly like the sound of one of the local lawyers that you have spoken to ask them if they would go onto Britannia conveyancing panel as it may only take about 2-3 weeks. As long as they meet Britannia’s requirements it can be a very simple job for the solicitor. Other stuff will be going on in parallel (as you are at an early stage) so it may not delay matters.

Almost all banks and building societies have complaints procedures. Your first port of call should be one of the Britannia branches or the Customer Services Team at Britannia head office. Ordinarily complaints to Britannia are sorted out very quickly. However if you are not satisfied that the matter is resolved you can write to the Financial Ombudsman Service at South Quay Plaza, 183 Marsh Wall, London E14 9SR who will take matters further.