Broker trying to rip me off.

payless

If you did not agree upfront... don't pay anything... and regardless you should complain if not rec'd the IDD/about out services upfront & about the request for a fee later.


if you are days away from completion , then how could he hinder the application... unless he knows something iffy about your application, in which case he's at risk also .

Assuming we are hearing all the story... the type of broker you mention should be run out of business.

dunstonh

You shouldnt pay a penny. Nothing was agreed up front. He cannot enforce that as there is no fee agreement. Assuming everything you say is correct, this type of approach should not get any reward and he should be penalised for the actions that have a negative impact on all advisers.

Conrad

access122 wrote:

Thanks for your advice. I will ask him to drop the charge, or maybe ill pay him a reduced fee, but in the meantime is there anything to stop me from ringing Northern Rock and telling them to go ahead with my mortgage and to deal with me directly?

No dont pay him a reduced fee, he is acting completely outside the rules.

I promise you there is nothing more to pay. If he implies the 'application could suffer' just ask for the compliance officers telephone number.
He will never win this one.

Conrad

access122 wrote:

Well the answer to that is the same reason that he has only just now informed me of the fee; because i am up to the wire financially, he knows it and is probably counting on me being desperate enough to just pay it and be done. Another four to six weeks is a long time to wait..

Can I ask that you report this to the FSA. They keep a record on such matters even where you have'nt entered into a formal complaints process. The behaviour exhibited here is a classic warning sign and Id be willing to bet many of his files would reveal a similar pattern.

AndrewSmith

Agreed with the above, do not pay him a penny.

Contct the solicitor dealing with the case (if it is a remortgage then it will most likely be the lender's own solicitor). They are the ones who will generally be responsible for paying any 'broker fee' to the broker if it is to be added to the mortgage. They will want to see a fee agreement before releasing payment to the broker hence he is now asking for you to agree to the fee.

Tell the solicitors that no such agreement exists and that they should not release any broker fee to the broker as you have never been provided with information of it until now, and you have not agreed to it's being paid.

Also do noot allow the broker to insinuate that by not accepting the fee it will damage your application. Speak to the lender's solicitor as I have said and let them know what the situation is.

Give the broker 1 chance to revoke his claim for a fee telling him that if he refuses or threatens to jeopardise your application in any way you will go directly to his relevant compliance dept.

Also, make sure everyone you know is aware of how you are being treated.

Rick62

If the mortgage has been offerred and is now with the lawyers then you should be OK anyway, it should be out the hands of the broker. Speak to the lawyer and maybe Northern Rock and check the situation and see if you can inform them that you wish to proceed, but the broker is no longer authorised to give instructions on your behalf.

If he did do anything to jeapodise your mortgage at this point he would face penalties and having his authorities removed. So if he threatens you counter that you will complain to his network, L&G, the FSA and the Financial Ombusdsman Service.

My disdain for brokers like this is beyond words. The vast majority of brokers are professional and completely honest and idiots like this give the whole profession a bad reputation.

access122

Hi all. Major relief here. The broker says the form he sent me relates to the £95 admin fee ive already paid and that there are no other charges i have to pay. This is a massive relief. He says " the regulator says we have to put the 1.5% on the form as the maximum I could charge ". I still feel wary of signing the form and perhaps tying myself into a legal obligation to pay him the 1.5 % however. The form does say "up to 1.5 %". Is this form standard then? Thanks for your answers, hopefully ive just assumed the worst and im worrying about nothing.

Rick62

It might well be OK then. However to be safe just don't sign the form, or if you do cross out the 'up to 1.5%' and write in '£95' and sign the alteration and take a copy of the form.

Had he previously told you you had to pay 1.5% or had you read it on this form?

AndrewSmith

DO not sign it in it's current form. Only sign it if it clearly and unambiguously states that you only pay him £95.00

payless

Can't see why you need to sign ( £95 or 1.5% ) this after the event .. the fee should be agreed before hand

Get it looked at. .. could you upload or paste the section for us to see it ???

If in doubt, don't sign it ..

There is a form that is used , that has options listed ( fairly industry standard... but not taotally) .. although thats a presale form, and the option should be cleared selected ( ie , no fee, £95, or 1.5% - with example in £ - : NOT something wishy wasy like upto 1.5% !!)