It’s a bit of a stretch but I’d argue that there is a read across to the mortgage market here. Plummeting mortgage rates are very important and grab headlines, but without the service to back them up they carry much less weight.
In the best-buy tables this is all great news for borrowers; however when rates are so competitive it can put pressure on service, and this can cause delays and stress which is understandably very frustrating from a broker point of view.
Ongoing rate cuts and swathes of new lenders setting up shop drives innovation in the UK mortgage market, which will ultimately be of benefit to borrowers. Add in the ongoing proposals aimed at helping first-time buyers and external factors such as the forthcoming EU Mortgage Credit Directive, and lenders are going to be kept very busy keeping up with the changes to the way the market operates in the next few years.
However, without consistently high levels of service, this will quickly become a difficult time for mortgage lenders.
Service is about many things, but in the intermediary market it includes introducing dedicated case handling teams, reducing the number of times an intermediary has to contact the lender, and systems which deliver quicker valuation and offer turnaround times. Service is not all about making promises, it’s about supporting brokers professionally and responsibly and generating confidence.
At the end of the day it comes down to looking at how to reduce the time from application to completion and ensuring consistency so service does not wobble when rates are helping to generate enquiries.
The quality of advice brokers provide their clients is a key strength and differentiator and they need lenders to provide competitive rates and service in order to free up more of their time so they can focus on their clients.
Ian Wilson is head of Halifax Intermediaries
