Pepper Money Conveyancing Lender Panel Compliance Tool

Lexsure’s COMPLETIONmonitor is web-based pre- and post-completion checklist for residential conveyancing lawyers. Supported by the CML and PI insurers such as AmTrust. It is a unique risk management tool.

This software optimises the way you can prove to lender panels that you are, and can stay fully compliant with their requirements, with notifications given on Pepper Money’s changes. While utilising the software is not a condition for being on the Pepper Money panel, demonstrating you can remain up to date with Pepper Money’s Handbook requirements is an excellent support to your panel application and, more importantly, safeguard your panel status.

COMPLETIONmonitor creates real-time alerts, automatically produces COLP and CQS reports, and will enhance your firm's efficiency. It is also simply to use, cost-effective and, for many firms, leads to a PII saving.

Find a Law Firm approved by Pepper Money

Banks and building societies often vary their requirements. The UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook requirements from Pepper Money 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, Pepper Money has made 2 revisions or additions to sections of their version of the CML Handbook.
That equates to a section change every 1365.0 days. In total, 1% of the sections of P2 of the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook for Pepper Money have been changed since 15/12/2008.

To find out more about lender panel compliance,

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Frequently asked questions relating to the Pepper Money Solicitor Panel from members of the public

My fiance and I are novices when it comes to buying a property. Within the 48 hours our conveyancer has forwarded the sale agreement to sign with a detailed report with a view to exchanging next week. Pepper Money have this morning contacted us to inform me that they have now hit a problem as our conveyancer is not on their conveyancing panel. Is this a problem?
When purchasing a property with the benefit of a mortgage it is usual for the purchaser's solicitors to also act for the purchaser's lender.

In order to act for a bank or building society a law firm has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the law firm to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the firm has to satisfy and indeed some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Quality Scheme. Your solicitors should contact Pepper Money and see if they can apply for membership of the Pepper Money conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable Pepper Money will instruct their own solicitors to act. You are not legally obliged to appoint a law firm on the Pepper Money conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own solicitors, in which case it will likely add costs, and it may delay matters as you have another set of people involved.

We are due to exchange on the purchase a house but as a result of damage from the recent storms I have agreed compensation from the seller of £3k approx by way of a reduction in the price. This was going to be dealt with as part of the conveyancing process but my mortgage company Pepper Money will not agree to this. Why was Pepper Money even consulted?
Your lawyer being on the Pepper Money conveyancing panel is duty bound to inform Pepper Money of any changes to the purchase price. If you were to refuse your lawyers to disclose the reduction to Pepper Money then they would have to discontinue acting for you and Pepper Money.
I am Googling for competitive conveyancing fees. Can I be assured that all the practices that are listed on your site are on the Pepper Money conveyancing panel?
The solicitor and licensed conveyancing practices listed on our site have assured us via an online form that they are on the Pepper Money panel and agreed to advise us to take down their listing in the event of removal off of the Pepper Money panel. To date we have not been informed by either a mortgage company or a member of the public that the data about a specific firm being on the Pepper Money conveyancing panel is not accurate.
I am in the process of remortgaging my home does my lawyer have to be on the Pepper Money Solicitor panel?
In theory, you could use a solicitor that is not on Pepper Money conveyancing panel, but Pepper Money would require one of their panel solicitors to be instructed to act in their interests, and you'd have to pay for this - so most people instruct a panel solicitor. It's also easier, as otherwise you'd have to deal with two solicitors for the same transaction.
Are all Conveyancing Quality Solicitors on the Pepper Money conveyancing panel?
A selection of banks and building societies now use the accreditation scheme as the starting point for Panel approval such as HSBC and Santander. The Law Society’s CQS accreditation however is no guarantee to lender panel acceptance. That being said,the Council of Mortgage Lenders have indicated that it is likely to become a pre-requisite for firms wishing to join their panels.
Can I be sure that the solicitor on the Pepper Money panel is any good?
seeking recommendations is a sensible 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 recommend that you speak with the lawyer carrying out your conveyancing
After much negotiation I have agreed a price on an apartment. My mortgage broker recommended their conveyancers I paid an upfront payment of 225. Soon after the conveyancers contacted me to say that they were not on the Pepper Money conveyancing panel. Am I right in thinking that I should be due a refund?
You should be able to recover this from the law firm if they were not on the Pepper Money panel. They should have asked at the outset which lender you were obtaining a mortgage with. An important lesson to readers of this site is to check that the lawyers are on the appropriate lender panel.