Broker Ruined Application

Sam_Oneil

Thanks for advise

[Deleted User]

Sounds a good offer, on the basis of actual losses, which appear to be none, so it's a strong goodwill gesture.

ariarnia

Just for clarity, what actual loss or harm was caused (beyond 'emotional distress')?

You risked losing your builder, but if I read correctly you didn't and the mortgage was granted/work was undertaken.

Second question, what percentage is the £500 of the broker fee you paid for the service?

Those details will help workout if the compensation offered is proportionate/reasonable.

Sam_Oneil

ariarnia wrote: »

Just for clarity, what actual loss or harm was caused (beyond 'emotional distress')?

Extreme stress (obviously I would say that though as I was the one experiencing it) I had a deadline of Friday the 21st to pay my builder. The money arrived in my account at 2 minutes to 5:00 p.m. on the 21st.


There was no broker fee, but we had a £750 early repayment fee on our old mortgage. The company we used got a percentage from the bank, but we have no idea what that is. I don't think it was very much to be honest.


Just looking for a some perspective as we are in the middle of it and not sure if what they are offering is reasonable or not.

kingstreet

FWIW we get 0.38% on an HSBC remortgage.

Why did it take 27 days (21/08 to 17/09) to get to the final correct offer?

ACG

I am just trying to put myself in the brokers shoes - thankfully I have not made so many mistakes on an application.

As there has been no actual losses, I am just trying to think what is reasonable. I am not sure we would offer £500, but I would probably waive our fee and then offer maybe £250.

No idea what the Ombudsman would say, but I do not think £500 is unreasonable.

Also the commission is on the illustration and the offer. So you should be able to see what they receive or at least receive prior to any deductions.

Sam_Oneil

Because they made a second data entry error when trying to correct the first date entry error.... :-(



'After receiving the revised offer, you also noticed that the breakdown of the mortgage amount was now incorrect; the additional borrowing required for home improvements was no longer included. Again an error made by XXXXX, as part of the application process, keyed incorrectly. [Again] The mortgage application was again sent back to HSBC, who then updated it and sent a 2nd revised mortgage offer out on 17/09/2018, this offer was correct.'

minimike2

There is no financial loss. Some mistakes were made, but ultimately corrected. The amount of ERC you paid to come out your old mortgage is totally irrelevant to your complaint.

£500 is a good outcome and highly unlikely that the FoS would award anything more than this. In fact I would be suprised if they would recommend anything much more than £250 for what is just a delay from some admin errors.

Take the £500 and move on.

Sam_Oneil

Thanks everyone. Some outside advice has certainly helped me stop taking it personally. I appreciate your time. :-)

dunstonh

For next time, remember that the majority of brokers are small local firms relying on word of mouth and local reputation. The big firms with online presence tend to be factory line services where the quality of staff is generally not up to the level of a small local firm. The factory line staff usually hand over the administration to people who are not qualified as mortgage advisers to type in and do not do the whole process themselves. Once off the phone or doing their bit with you online, they move onto the next one. Often, doing as many cases in a day that a local broker will do in a month. This puts extreme pressure on them and can lead to rushing. I'm guessing that yours was not a small local firm as you not expect a local firm to have any internet coverage or reputation you can research. You said you did a lot of research into the company which suggests a larger firm.

As there was no financial loss and just inconvenience and stress, I would expect the FOS to award £250. So, the £500 award is generous.

MortgageMamma

Mortgages are always stressful, and your broker is a human being capable of error. But in this case it wasn't serious errors. As DunstonH says, its likely an administrator would key your application to the lender, not the broker.

It all played out OK in the end for you, and with my experience of HSBC some of the delays could be caused by them as well as the broker. They are not the slickest of lenders and can be a bit awkward to deal with when changes are needed.

Do something nice with your compensation, maybe have a short break to try and de-stress if you can. Put it to the back of your mind and don't dwell on it, it will only stress you out more.