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Ready to buy a new home? Failing to check that a lawyer is on the Metro Bank list of approved solicitors can put your transaction at risk of delay or failure.

Find an Approved Solicitor on the Metro Bank plc Conveyancing Panel

Metro Bank Conveyancing Panel : Questions and Answers

Is the fact that my conveyancer is not on the Metro Bank Conveyancing panel that there is a problem with the quality of his conveyancing?
That would more than likely be a wrong assumption to make. There are all sorts of perfectly reasonable explanations. A recent report by the solicitors regulator indicated 76% of law firms surveyed had been removed from at least one lender panel. The top 3 reasons are as follows: (1) lack of transactions (2) the lawyer is a sole practitioner (3) as part of the HSBC panel reduction (4) regulatory contact by SRA (5) accidental removal. If you are concerned you should simply call the firm and ask them why they are no longer on the approved list for Metro Bank.
I am due to complete my purchase next Friday. My conveyancing lawyer has asked me to provide him with a copy of the building insurance for the house as as he informs me that he is duty bound to validate that it is in order for Metro Bank. What does the insurance need to cover?
All property lawyers on the Metro Bank conveyancing panel would need to check that the following risks are covered fire; lightning; aircraft; explosion; earthquake; storm; flood; escape of water or oil; riot; malicious damage; theft or attempted theft; falling trees and branches and aerials; subsidence; heave;landslip;collision;accidental damage to underground services;professional fees, demolition and site clearance costs; and public liability to anyone else. There are some other issues such as the level of excess that are set out in Metro Bank’s Part 2 requirements of the CML Handbook (last updated on Metro Bank). Being on the Metro Bank conveyancing panel your lawyer is expect to follow these requirements.
Are there any apps to help search for a local solicitor on the Metro Bank conveyancing panel? I have a car and am prepared to travel up to 10 miles to meet the solicitor.
You can use the find a conveyancing panel tool on this page. Please choose the lender and your location and you will see a number of lawyer located nearest you. Alternatively you can type in the name of your proposed law firm and see if they are listed as being on the Metro Bank solicitor panel.
I am selling my house. Does my solicitor have to be on the Metro Bank conveyancing panel in order to deal with redeeming my mortgage?
Ordinarily, even if your lawyer is not on the Metro Bank conveyancing panel they can still act for you on your sale. it might be that the lender will not release the original deeds (if applicable and increasingly irrelevant) until after the mortgage is paid off. You should speak to your lawyer directly before you start the process though to ensure that there is no problem as lenders are changing their requirements fairly frequently at the moment.
I had instructed online solicitors based in Cardiff who are on the Metro Bank solicitor panel. They have just invoiced me a separate fee of £135 for dealing with the Metro Bank mortgage. Is this an additional conveyancing fee set by Metro Bank?
Unfortunately, as long as it is in their Terms and Conditions or Quote then yes your solicitors can charge a fee for this. This fee is not set by Metro Bank but by your lawyers. Some firms on the Metro Bank will charge an ‘acting for lender’ fee and others do not.
After much negotiation I have agreed a price on a house. My financial adviser recommended their conveyancers I paid an upfront payment of 200. Soon after the conveyancers contacted me to say that they were not on the Metro Bank 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 Metro Bank 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.
Sometime soon me and my wife are purchasing a flat in Hendon. Conveyancing solicitors in Hendon are about to beinstructed. My agentrecommended that we double-check that the solicitor in Hendon is on the Metro Bank solicitors panel. Is this really necessary?
Far from all Hendon conveyancing practices are on the Metro Bank conveyancing panel. 5 people a month use our search tool to find a Hendon conveyancing solicitor on the on the Metro Bank panel.