What Happens If Your Solicitor Is Not on Your Mortgage Lender's Panel?

If your solicitor is not on your mortgage lender's panel, the lender will not let them act on its behalf, so it appoints its own solicitor to protect the loan. You then have an off-panel solicitor for your side and a separate lender's solicitor for the mortgage. That usually means higher fees, a slower purchase, and sometimes having to change firms.

What does "not on the panel" actually mean?

Not on the panel means your firm has not been approved by your lender to handle its side of the mortgage. Your lender keeps an approved list of conveyancing firms it trusts to follow its rules in the UK Finance Mortgage Lenders' Handbook. Normally one firm acts for both you and the lender. When your firm is not on the list, the lender cannot use them, so it brings in a firm it does approve. If you are not sure what a panel is in the first place, start with what a mortgage lender conveyancing panel is.

What are the consequences of an off-panel solicitor?

An off-panel solicitor has up to three consequences, and which ones apply depends on your lender's policy.

• You pay twice for the legal work. Your conveyancer bills you as normal, and you also cover the lender's solicitor fee and their costs.
• The purchase slows down. Two firms duplicate checks and pass documents between them. In a chain, a delay at one link stalls everyone.
• You may be forced to switch. Some lenders do not permit separate representation. If yours does not, you have to move to a panel firm and repeat work you have already paid for.

What should you do if your solicitor is not on the panel?

Act early, because the cheapest fix is available before you have instructed anyone. Work through this in order:

1. Confirm the lender. Check which lender your mortgage offer is with, since panels are specific to each lender.
2. Check your firm's status for that exact lender. Ask the firm directly, then cross-check on LenderPanel.
3. If they are off-panel, weigh the options. Ask your lender whether it allows separate representation and what the added fee is, then compare that against instructing a panel firm from the start.
4. Instruct a panel firm if it is cleaner. In most cases, using a firm already on your lender's panel is faster and cheaper than paying for two.

You can find a firm on your lender's panel in minutes. Search by lender and postcode at find a conveyancer, or open your lender's page from the lender directory.

Does this apply to remortgages and transfers of equity too?

Yes. Panel approval matters any time a lender is involved, not only on a purchase. If you remortgage to a new lender, the firm handling the switch must be on that lender's panel, or the lender instructs its own. The same is true for a transfer of equity, where you add or remove someone from the title while a mortgage is in place. These transactions feel more routine than a full purchase, so it is easy to instruct a firm without checking and hit the same off-panel problem. Confirm panel status for the specific lender before you start.

What should you ask your lender?

If you are deciding whether to keep an off-panel firm, get clear answers on three points first:

• Do you allow separate representation? If not, you will have to switch firms.
• What will the lender's solicitor charge? Get the fee and their costs in writing so you can compare the true cost against instructing a panel firm.
• Will it delay completion? Ask how long the lender's solicitor usually takes, so you can factor it into your timeline. There is more on this in how long conveyancing takes.

How do you avoid this happening at all?

Check panel approval before you instruct, not after. It is the single most valuable step in choosing a conveyancer, because it removes the risk completely. The method is in how to check if a conveyancer is on your lender's panel, and choosing a conveyancer covers what else to confirm before you commit, including fixed fees and regulation.

Key takeaways

• Off-panel means your lender instructs its own solicitor as well as yours.
• Expect higher cost and delay, and sometimes a forced switch of firm.
• The fix is almost always to instruct a panel firm from the start.
• Check panel status for your exact lender first, free via the directory or by searching your lender and postcode.