Find a Law Firm
approved by Santander

Lenders have always had an approved set of law firms they are willing to work with, but in the past few years big names such as HSBC, have reviewed and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have worked with them for more than 25 years.

Banks point to the increase in fraud by way of justification 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.

The short answer to your last question is that, notwithstanding the potential for a conflict of interest, you and Santander are the client. A precondition to being on the Santander approved panel is to comply with the CML Handbook requirements (last updated for this lender on Santander). The CML Handbook conditions require your lawyer to disclose issues such as defects will the lease so that Santander can be afforded the opportunity to check with their valuer as to the extent that the value of the property is affected . Should you refuse to allow your lawyer to make the appropriate notification then your lawyer will have no choice but to discontinue acting for you.

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

It very much depends from lender to lender but many of the Terms and Conditions of Conveyancing Panel Appointment require the file to be held for a period of 6 years. That being said we have not seen a copy of the Santander Conveyancing Panel Terms. It might be worth you contacting Santander directly.

obtaining 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 advise that you speak with the solicitor carrying out your transaction

They are simply saying that the cost for acting for the lender is included in the fee being quoted. It is worth you checking that they are on the Santander conveyancing panel

Santander will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually Santander will appoint their own surveyor to do this, and you will have to pay for it. Remember that this is a valuation for mortgage purposes and not a survey. You may wish to consider appointing your own surveyor to carry out a survey or prepare a home buyers report on the property. It is up to you to satisfy yourself that the property is structurally sound before you buy it. If the survey or report reveals that building work is needed, you should tell your solicitor. You may wish to renegotiate with the seller. or Your lawyer will not organise the survey but they may be able to put you in touch with a local one that they recommend. RICS offers a find a surveyor service (just google it) where you can search for a qualified surveyor by postcode. As you are getting a mortgage with Santander you could contact your them to see if they have a list of approved surveyors.