Q and A’s regarding the Virgin Solicitor Panel from members of the public
A solicitor I wanted to use for conveyancing on a purchase said she would charge more if my mortgage is with Virgin because of their unusual legal requirements. Will I regret using Virgin? Is Virgin conveyancing so much more difficult?
Virgin conveyancing requirements for their panel are no better or no more complicated than most lenders.
It is the case now the CML Handbook, the "bible" used by solicitors to establish lender requirements, is different for each lender.
It is not clear if your lawyer is on the Virgin conveyancing panel. If they are not, this does add further risk of delay as Virgin will appoint their own solicitors to look after their interest.
Can you help?. My lawyer is not to blame but, my purchase conveyancing has been going on for months. The Local Authority Search from Virgin was date stamped random date and we have agreed a date for me to move into the property on 10 days inc Day of week eg. Mon. My lawyer says that as she is on the Virgin conveyancing panel she needs to redo the searches as they are no longer acceptable to the lender.
One of the many conditions to being on the Virgin approved panel is to comply with the CML Handbook Part 2 obligations (last updated for this lender on Virgin)which states that a local authority search be not more than 6 months old. You should nevertheless ask your lawyer to check whether something called ‘search validation’ indemnity insurance is acceptable to Virgin.
I need to find a Virgin panel solicitor in Stirling. Could you help me?
Unfortunately it’s not apparent why you need a Virgin panel solicitor but in any event, if you can not find one on our search tool you will need to speak directly to Virgin to find out which solicitors in Virgin are on their panel. If you do find such a firm not listed please direct them to our site to list. After all the cost is only one £1 a month
What happens if my solicitor is suspended from the Virgin Conveyancing panel prior to the completion date?
The first thing to point out is that, this is a very rare occurrence. In most cases even where a law firm is removed off of a panel the lender would allow the completion to go ahead as the lender would appreciate the difficulties that they would place you in if you have ti instruct a new solicitor days before completion. In a worst case scenario where the lender insists that you instruct a new firm then it is possible for a very good lawyer to expedite the conveyancing albeit that you may pay a significant premium for this. The analogous situation is where a buyer instructs a lawyer, exchanges contracts and the law firm is shut down by the regulator such as the SRA. Again, in this situation you can find lawyers who can troubleshoot their way to bring the conveyancing to a satisfactory conclusion - albeit for a fee.
When it comes to mortgage companies such as Virgin do lawyers have to be pay a fee to be on the list of approved solicitors?
We are not aware of any lender fees to be on their panel although some do charge an administration charge to deal with the processing of the conveyancing panel application.
It is not clear whether my mortgage offer requires a lease extension . I have called into my local branch Virgin on numerous occasions and was told they are content with the situation and they would lend. My solicitor - who is on the Virgin conveyancing panel- telephoned and was told not they would not lend in accordance with their CML Handbook minimum lease term requirements. I simply dont know who is right
Your lawyer has to follow the CML Handbook Part 2 requirements for Virgin. Unless your lawyer obtains specific confirmation in writing that Virgin will go ahead your lawyer has no choice but to refrain from exchanging contract and committing you to the purchase. We would suggest that you ask Virgin to contact your lawyer in writing confirming that they will accept the remaining number of years left on the lease.
My offer was accepted on an apartment on the 12th February 2014, valuation was booked 3 days after, received a clean bill of health. Conveyancer instructed, so the only thing outstanding was my mortgage offer. Having made daily calls to Virgin and chasing them on my offer I have now been told that my offer will not be issued unless the lawyer is on the Virgin conveyancing panel. Can the lender hold off the offer?
Mortgage companies tend not to not issue a mortgage until they have details of a lawyer on their panel. It can take a few weeks for Virgin to deal with your lawyers application to be on the Virgin conveyancing panel. There's no guarantee that your solicitors will be accepted.
