Birmingham Midshires Conveyancing Lender Panel Compliance Tool

Lexsure’s COMPLETIONmonitor is web-based pre- and post-completion checklist for property lawyers. Supported by the Council of Mortgage Lenders and PI insurers. It is a unique risk mitigation tool.

This system assists the way you can prove to lender panels that you are, and can stay fully compliant with their requirements, with notifications given on Birmingham Midshires’s changes. Notwithstanding that utilising the software is not a condition for acceptance on the Birmingham Midshires panel, demonstrating you can stay up to date with Birmingham Midshires’s Handbook requirements is a helpful support to your application to their lender panel and, more importantly, safeguard your firm’s panel standing.

The system generates real-time alerts, automatically produces SRA and CQS reports, and will enhance your firm's efficiency. In addition it is simply to use, cost-effective and, for some firms, results in a PII saving.

Find a Law Firm approved by Birmingham Midshires

Banks and building societies frequently change their requirements. The UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook requirements from Birmingham Midshires are not guidelines, they are instructions from a client. As with many clients, instructions can change - and they do change, over time:

A Timeline of Policy Changes


Since 2008, Birmingham Midshires has made 314 revisions or additions to sections of their version of the CML Handbook.
That equates to a section change every 8.7 days. In total, 45% of the sections of P2 of the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook for Birmingham Midshires have been changed since 15/12/2008.

To find out more about lender panel compliance,

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Recent Changes Include

# Date Assoc. Changes Related To
6.7.1 21/06/2019 CML
New Build Conveyancing
Birmingham Midshires panel conveyancer requirements for New Build Conveyancing : Home Warranty Schemes
10.7 22/10/2018 CML
Mortgage Advance and Certificate of Title
In the event of a delayed completion, when and how is advance to be returned to Birmingham Midshires by the approved lawyer?
6.4.4 31/08/2018 CML
Disclosing Incentives
Birmingham Midshires approved lawyers additional requirements concerning reporting incentives
17.2.1a 15/03/2018 CML
Redemption Payments
Where do solicitors and conveyancers send the discharge and repayment remittance in relation to Birmingham Midshires mortgages ?
10.10 28/04/2017 CML
holding the mortgage advance
10.7 28/04/2017 CML
Mortgage Advance and Certificate of Title
In the event of a delayed completion, when and how is advance to be returned to Birmingham Midshires by the approved lawyer?
6.11.1 28/04/2017 CML
Conveyancing Searches: Redevelopments and Road Proposals
Contact details at Birmingham Midshires for approved lawyers to used where Birmingham Midshires needs to be notified where property is affected by redevelopment or road proposals.
Obstruction of Access Indemnity Insurance
7.3 28/04/2017 CML
Occupiers at the Property
Birmingham Midshires panel conveyancer requirements for adult occupiers : Do Birmingham Midshires require a consent to mortgage from all occupants aged 17 or over
6.7.3 18/04/2017 CML
New Build Conveyancing
Birmingham Midshires approved conveyancer requirements for New Build Conveyancing : should any assignments of building standards indemnity schemes be sent to Birmingham Midshires
8.1 18/04/2017 CML
Circumstances Requiring Independent Legal Advice
Birmingham Midshires panel conveyancer requirements re circumstances requiring independent legal advice : Do Birmingham Midshires allow a firm to advise any of the specified third parties

Last update 14/01/2020

Q and A’s regarding the Birmingham Midshires Solicitor Panel from members of the public

I am obtaining a mortgage with Birmingham Midshires. I intend to employ the services of a Licensed Conveyancer. Does the Birmingham Midshires Solicitor panel allow for Licensed Conveyancers
Birmingham Midshires’s conveyancing panel is, like many other lenders represented by the CML or Building Society Association, open to Licensed Conveyancers regulated by the CLC.
Our son-in-law is about to exchange on a new build apartment with a mortgage from Birmingham Midshires. His conveyancer has advised him of a delay in completing the ‘Disclosure of Incentive Form’. This document is news to me - what is it and who needs sight of it?
The document is intended to provide information to the main parties engaged in the transaction. Therefore, it will be provided to your son’s lawyer who should be on the Birmingham Midshires conveyancing panel as a standard part of the process, and to the surveyor when requested.

The Developer will be required to start the process by downloading the form and completing it.

The form will therefore need to be available for the valuer at the time of his or her site visit. The form should be sent to the Birmingham Midshires conveyancing panel solicitor as early as possible, in order to avoid any last minute delays, and no later than at exchange of contracts.

What tools are available to find a local solicitor on the Birmingham Midshires conveyancing panel? I have a car and am prepared to travel up to 10 miles to meet the lawyer.
You can use the find a conveyancing panel search on this website. 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 Birmingham Midshires solicitor panel.
My house is up for sale and I have a buyer. Does my solicitor have to be on the Birmingham Midshires conveyancing panel in order to deal with paying off my mortgage?
Ordinarily, even if your lawyer is not on the Birmingham Midshires 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.
My husband and I are in the process of looking at houses and am about to put in an offer. Is it best to have a conveyancer on ‘stand by’? I will be getting a home loan with Birmingham Midshires
You should start obtaining conveyancing quotes from solicitors ASAP. Once you decide who you want to use and once your offer is accepted you can instruct them to work for you and pass their details on the the estate agent. As you are getting a mortgage with Birmingham Midshires , make sure you remember to check that your lawyer is on the Birmingham Midshires conveyancing panel.
I am selling my apartment. I had a double glazing fitted in month 7 but did not receive a FENSA certificate or Building Regulation Certificate. My buyer's lender, Birmingham Midshires are being pedantic. The solicitor who is on the Birmingham Midshires conveyancing panel is saying indemnity insurance will be fine but Birmingham Midshires are requiring a building regulation certificate. Why do Birmingham Midshires have a conveyancing panel of they don’t accept advice from them?
It is probably the case that Birmingham Midshires have referred the matter to their valuer. The reason why Birmingham Midshires may not want to accept indemnity insurance is because it does not give them any reassurance that the double glazing correctly and safely installed. It merely protects against enforcement action which is very unlikely anyway.
I have instructed a lawyer having made sure that they are on the Birmingham Midshires conveyancing panel. Does my lawyer arrange the survey of the property? Or Having digested plenty of mortgage guides,I note that it is considered advisable to get your house surveyed prior to buying it. When I asked my solicitor - who is on the Birmingham Midshires conveyancing panel - on this she said they don't do this and I need to contract an independent surveyor. Is that normal?
Birmingham Midshires will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually Birmingham Midshires 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 Birmingham Midshires you could contact your them to see if they have a list of approved surveyors.