Find an Approved Solicitor on the Virgin Money plc
Conveyancing Panel
Q and A’s regarding the Virgin Conveyancing Panel
I am selling my house and the estate agent has just called to advise that the buyers are swapping conveyancer. I am told that this is due to the fact that Virgin will only engage with property lawyers on their conveyancing panel. Why would a big named mortgage company only deal with specific lawyers?
Mortgage companies have always had panels of law firms they are willing to work with, but in the past few years big names such as Santander, have reviewed and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have worked with them for more than 15 years.
Lenders point to the increase in fraud as the reason 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?. My lawyer is not to blame but, my purchase conveyancing has been going on for months. The Local Authority Search from Virgin was issued random date and we have agreed a date for me to move into the property on 6 months + 3. My solicitor says that as she is on the Virgin conveyancing panel she needs to reorder the searches as they are now out of date.
One of the many conditions to being on the Virgin approved panel is to comply with the CML Handbook Part 2 obligations (last updated for this lender on Virgin)which states 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 Virgin.
Having used your search tool I can't find the lawyer I was hoping to instruct as being on the Virgin conveyancing panel. My lawyer has said that they are on the Virgin 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 Virgin 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 Virgin solicitor panel.
I am buying a terraced house and getting a mortgage with Virgin. Conveyancing solicitors are said to be ‘a necessary evil’ but can I do it myself?
Leaving aside the complexities and merits of DIY conveyancing you will have to appoint a solicitor on the Virgin conveyancing panel to look after their interests. Most people therefore find it easier to let the solicitor act for them and the lender. Furthermore there is minimal cost savings to made in you doing to conveyancing for yourself and another lawyer conducting the conveyancing for the lender. Please feel free to use the search tool to find a lawyer on the Virgin conveyancing panel in your location.
Is the case that all CQS (Conveyancing Quality Scheme) solicitors on the Virgin conveyancing panel?
A selection of lenders now use the accreditation scheme as the starting point for Panel approval such as HSBC and Santander. The Law Society’s CQS membership however is no guarantee to lender panel acceptance. That being said,the Council of Mortgage Lenders have indicated that it is likely to become a pre-requisite for firms wishing to join their panels.
On the whole I have been dissatisfied with the level or service received from my lawyer. Is there a Virgin conveyancing panel complaints department or do I complain directly to the law firm?
There is little point in complaining directly to Virgin. Every solicitor firm and conveyancer must have a complaints procedure. You can get information from the solicitor’s or conveyancer’s website or ask at their office. They must tell you about it if you ask.
The Legal Ombudsman will make sure that your complaint is addressed by the solicitor. It can also advise you how to complain.
If a licensed conveyancer does not have a complaints procedure or will not tell you about it, contact the Council for Licensed Conveyancers (CLC), which will make sure that your complaint is properly dealt with by the conveyancer. Please see below for more information.
After much negotiation I have agreed a price on a house. My mortgage broker recommended their conveyancers I paid an upfront payment of 150. Soon after the conveyancers contacted me to say that they were not on the Virgin conveyancing panel. Am I right in thinking that I should be due a refund?
You should be able to recover this from the law firm if they were not on the Virgin panel. They should have asked at the outset which lender you were obtaining a mortgage with. An important lesson to readers of this site is to check that the lawyers are on the appropriate lender panel.